A little history and culture this week, as we tell you about a grape variety that we discovered a few days ago... the Noah grape variety . But do you know him?
Let's start with the beginning…
The Noah grape variety, also written Noa, is a hybrid grape variety from North America. It is a cross between two vines, Vitis riparia and Vitis labrusca . It was introduced into France to serve as a rootstock and fight against the terrible phylloxera , an aphid which destroyed more than two and a half million hectares of French vineyards at the end of the 19th century.
But that's not the most interesting thing!
Despite its high yields, the Noah grape variety was banned in 1930 because of the level of methanol contained in the wines made from it. These wines are harsh and not very pleasant on the nose and palate. But that's not all... methanol would have the effect of lastingly disrupting moods. Moreover, it is still said that the wines made from Noah made you go crazy and blind!
In France, the grape variety was therefore banned from the beginning of 1935, along with five other grape varieties from the same group: Othello, Isabelle, Jacquez, Clinton and Herbemont. All these vines were finally uprooted in 1960. However, it was not until 2008 that this law was adopted by the European Council.
In any case, we never tasted it...
