Jurançon (wine region)

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The Jurançon wine-growing region near Lasseubetat

The Jurançon wine-growing region is located in the foothills of the Pyrenees in the southwest of the Sud-Ouest wine-growing region in France . The 1000 hectares of approved vineyards are spread across the municipalities of Jurançon , Abos , Arbus , Artiguelouve , Aubertin , Bosdarros , Cardesse , Cuqueron , Estialesq , Gan , Gelos , Haut-de-Bosdarros , Lacommande , Lahourcade , Laroin , Lasseube , Lasseubetat , Lucq- de-Béarn , Mazères-Lezon , Monein , Narcastet , Parbayse , Rontignon , Saint-Faust and Uzos in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department and are located at an altitude between 250  m and 450  m . Since December 8, 1936 , the appellation has had the status of an Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC for short) and is partly congruent with the designation of origin Béarn . When the AOC label was introduced, the selection was extremely strict, as only 400 hectares of 3800 hectares of existing vineyards were found to be good for the appellation.

history

Viticulture probably began in the region as early as 2000 years ago. Roman mosaics from that time, which were found in the vicinity of the area, at least allow this conclusion. In writing, however, the area was first mentioned in 1117 under the name "juransoo"; Incidentally, this 180 years before the establishment of the Jurançon municipality.

From 1382 the province of Béarn was under the rule of the kings of Navarre . In the 16th century, by resolution of the Parliament of Navarre, the vineyards in this area were defined as special vineyard sites (crus). At the same time, it was also prohibited to import foreign wines. This can be seen as one of the first attempts at a classification or protected designation of origin in Europe. The Duke of Vendome , Anton de Bourbon wetted his son, the future King at the baptism of Henry IV. (France) , whose lips with wine from Jurançon and rubbed it with a clove of garlic, to strengthen the newborn. The baptism practice, which bears the name baptême béarnais , was later retained in the French royal family.

The excellent reputation of the wine made for a good living for several centuries. In the case of exports as barrel goods, however, there were repeated illegal counterfeits ( panching , dilution with water, etc.) so that the introduction of bottling quickly improved the wine's dwindling reputation. From 1860, however, the wine-growing region was hit by powdery mildew and in 1892 by phylloxera . This in combination with the First World War almost sealed the end of viticulture in Jurançon. Only the recognition as AOC promises the winemakers a secure income again, so that the area has developed into a quality wine supplier again since 1936.

Grape varieties

The dry and sweet white wines are obtained from the varieties camaralet (maximum 15%), Courbu , Gros Manseng and Lauzet (maximum 15%) produced. For several years now, however, the qualitatively better grape variety Petit Manseng (for the sweet wine) has been increasingly being planted . It is already foreseeable that this variety will become the main grape of Jurançon. Since 1975 it is also allowed to declare the wine as Auslese (French: Vendange tardive). The area enjoys this special position alone with the Alsace Grand Cru appellation in France.

The Jurançon Noir and Jurançon Blanc grape varieties are not used in this region.

climate

The growing area is about 100 kilometers from the Atlantic Ocean and a maximum of 50 kilometers from the Pyrenees. The climate is therefore significantly influenced by the Atlantic low pressure areas coming from the west or northwest. The annual amount of precipitation is 1120 mm, the annual sunshine duration at 1900 hours for the southern location.

The average temperature is a mild 12.5–13 degrees Celsius, despite the moderately high duration of sunshine. This is explained by the greenhouse effect of a cloud cover that often accumulates in the Pyrenees. The area also benefits from warm down winds . Slopes are favored by the microclimate, as cold air accumulates in the valley floor.

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