Grapes & the vine
The grape is only the beginning.
Variety matters, but so do rootstock, vine age, pruning, canopy, water, crop load, ripening and the moment the grapes are picked.
The annual cycle
A vineyard changes constantly through the year.
Wine does not begin with ripe grapes. The condition of the vine months earlier can affect what finally arrives at harvest.
Dormancy & pruning
The vine rests through winter. Pruning decides how much one-year-old wood and how many buds remain to carry the next crop.
Budburst & shoot growth
New shoots emerge and begin carrying leaves and future flower clusters. Frost at this stage can damage the young growth.
Flowering & fruit set
Tiny flowers become berries. Weather around flowering can influence how evenly the bunch develops and how large the eventual crop may be.
Véraison & ripening
Berries soften and change colour. Sugar rises, acidity changes and flavour and tannin development accelerate toward harvest.
The names on the label
Variety, clone, rootstock and vine age are different ideas.
What is a grape variety?
A named grape variety is a genetically distinct form of grapevine propagated so its defining traits continue from vine to vine.
Clone, selection or synonym?
One variety can contain selected clones or broader massal selections, while the same variety may also carry different regional names.
Why use rootstocks?
Most modern wine grapes are grafted onto separate root systems chosen for issues such as phylloxera resistance, soil conditions and vine vigour.
Do old vines always make better wine?
Age alone is not a quality guarantee. Older vines can have deep-established root systems and naturally modest yields, but site, health and farming still matter.
What the grower can change
The grower gets plenty of chances to meddle before harvest.
Pruning, shade, water, crop size and picking date all tug at the fruit in different ways. None works alone, which is why vineyard decisions are less a recipe and more a very long game of consequences.
Training
The physical shape of the vine changes canopy exposure, airflow, mechanisation options and how fruit is positioned.
Pruning
Bud number and placement influence future shoots, crop load and the balance between growth and fruit.
Canopy management
Leaf removal, shoot positioning and hedging alter shade, airflow and the microclimate around the bunches.
Water
Irrigation, rainfall, soil water-holding capacity and vine demand all affect growth and ripening.
Yield
Crop size can influence ripening rate and concentration, but lower yield is not automatically better.
Harvest timing
Picking is a compromise between sugar, acidity, flavour, tannin development, weather risk and the intended wine style.
Explore the grapes
Compare varieties without treating them as stereotypes.
Each grape page separates the variety’s broad tendencies from what place, season and winemaking can change.