Cabernet blanc
A disease-resistant hybrid bred from Cabernet Sauvignon and Regent.
Cabernet blanc is a white wine grape variety bred in Switzerland by Valentin Blattner in 1991, crossing Cabernet Sauvignon with the hybrid Regent. It is notable for its strong resistance to fungal diseases and its ability to produce both dry and late-harvest dessert wines, with primary plantings in the Palatinate region of Germany.
Quick Facts
- Species
- Vitis vinifera
Facts from the source article.
Pedigree
Cabernet blanc is a hybrid of Cabernet Sauvignon and Regent. Earlier speculation that the second parent was an unknown disease-resistant variety was resolved when Regent, which carries resistance markers Rpv3 and Ren3, was confirmed as the missing link through analysis of 25 loci. Masters of Wine Jancis Robinson, Julia Harding, and Swiss geneticist José Vouillamoz had hypothesized that the Resistenzpartner might be a complex hybrid involving Silvaner, Riesling, and other crosses.
Viticulture
The vine is vigorous and highly resistant to frost and fungal infections, including powdery mildew, downy mildew, and botrytis bunch rot. It produces loose clusters of small, thick-skinned berries. A notable viticultural hazard is millerandage, where poor fertilization leads to a mix of normal and small seedless berries, which can increase sugar and phenolic levels and potentially unbalance the wine.
Wine regions
Although first developed in Switzerland, Cabernet blanc is most widely planted in the German wine region of Palatinate, where 7 hectares were under cultivation in 2007. German growers have submitted a request for official registration of the variety, which could lead to increased plantings. Outside Germany, experimental plantings exist in the Netherlands, particularly in Achterhoek and Gelderland, and limited plantings are found in Austria. In France, Domaine La Colombette in the Languedoc uses Cabernet blanc in its acclaimed cuvée "Au Creux du Nid." In the United States, wines labeled "Cabernet blanc" or "White Cabernet" are not made from this grape but are sweet pink blush wines from early-pressed Cabernet Sauvignon. In Australia, a white-berried color mutation of Cabernet Sauvignon called Shalistin was discovered in Langhorne Creek and used to produce a white wine marketed as "Cabernet blanc" from 2002. Another white-berried seedling, Cygne blanc, was found in Western Australia in 1989, but it is a selfling from a seed, not a crossing or mutation of a cutting.
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