Jacquet

[Peter May]

Hi All

I am looking for information on the origin of the hybrid grape variety Jacquet also known as Jacquez that was widely grown on Madeira and used to make Madeira wine until stopped by EU legislation in 1979, and now is used only for local wines.

I realise that this is past history but I'm hoping that some of you Madeira experts may have some old books in your librarys that mention Jacquez.

Some sources that I have come across say it originated in Madeira and cuttings were taken to the US (where is still grown) and then onto France (where is still grown) during the phylloxera crisis.

All information gratefully received

:help:

[Roy Hersh]

Hi Peter,

Nice to see you here. Before I respond to your question, last night I opened a bottle you'd appreciate (amongst 2 other wines): 1997 Kanonkop "Paul Sauer" and it was at its best ... finally. Very enjoyable although not a Pinotage.

Anyway, when I arrive home in a couple of days I will look through my books to see if I can find an answer for you. However, my only connection so far with the Jacquez grape, came to me by way of a Texas producer that is using this grape extensively to make both madeira and port styles of wine. Neither is very good imo, but he is trying and definitely uses the grape which is planted aplenty up in the Texas highlands.

Do check http://www.madeirawineguide.com and look under their grape varieties to see if this is something that is mentioned on that great site.

I thank you for dropping by!

[Peter Reutter]

dear Peter,
sorry, the MadeiraWineGuide is currently offline but will be back online in one or two days. Please take a look at the chapter "wineyards tours - faja dos padres" where you can find information about the Jacquet grape. As far as I know, this grape is indeed native to Madeira island and was taken to and later spread in the U.S.
It makes a local table wine for everyday use but is usually not part of any Madeira wine production.
Peter

[Marco D.]

There is a brief mention in the Oxford Companion to Wine under the Madeira entry:

"Other varieties planted are principally disease-resistant American hybrids such as Cunningham and Jacquet, although they are no longer permitted as ingredients in madeira and should be used exclusively in the production of the island's rustic table wine."

This seems to imply it is an American native grape? Not quite sure...

[Peter Reutter]

Quotation from MadeiraWineGuide:

"Even if you only visit the Fajã for a day trip, you should take a walk in the orchards and vineyards and later stop at the restaurant for a glass of the local Malmsey wine. They also offer some table wine and to taste this “jaqué” wine (from the Jacquez grape) is interesting too. The Jacquez was thought to be an interspecies breeding of an american Vitis aestivalis and an european Vitis vinifera. But according to DNA analysis Jaquez is a pure Vitis vinifera grape, so the origin must be european. Ampelograph Munson gives the story of a small cutting of the Jacquez vine travelling from Madeira island to the United States in a cigar box. This cigar box surfaced again in Longworth/Cincinatti and the cutting was propagated, therefor leading to the name Cigar Box Grape for Jacquez."

Part of this information had been taken from the German Wikipedia. There is no English entry about "Jacquez". The French article is the only other entry for "Jacquez" and there they will stil tell you, that it is an aestivaldis/vinifera hybrid. So no solid conclusions here... The German Wikipedia quotes Pierre Galets Dictionnaire encyclopédique des Cépages, Verlag Hachette Livre, 1. Auflage 2000. ISBN 2-01-23633-18
as the source of the information, so if anyone here has his book (I don't) he or she could shed some light on this :)

[Roy Hersh]

Thanks Peter for the great read. I knew that if anyone would know about Jacquez it would be you!

I was back at Faja dos Padres just over a week ago and it was every bit as wonderful the 2nd time. I will continue to make an annual pilgrimage to that lovely spot on the island. Mario Fernandes and his family are truly charming and welcoming. I had the table wines which ARE rustic to say the least, but refreshing when sitting and eating at their beachfront restaurant. I hope you are coming back to the USA at some point, as if you give me a couple of month's notice, I'll put together a tasting that will be even better than last time ... if that is possible.

[Peter May]

Many thanks to all those who have replied.

I have read that item on the Madeira WIne Guide which says that Jacquet was taken from Madeira to the USA and which also says that Jacquet is pure vinifera. That begs the questions if Jacqet is vinifera, why was (and still is) it banned by the EU as a hybrid?

However the same site (on the page on grape varieties) says "Most of the lesser grapes, planted after Oidium and Phylloxera are from the American Vitis Labrusca or Vitis Aestivaldis family. Their main members are: Jacquez......."

If Jacquet is native to Madeira and was a hybrid before it taken to the southern US then where/how did it get two US non-vinifera vines in its parentage?

[Peter May]

From the evidence I have so far read I have come to the conclusion that Jaquet is a hybrid that originated in the USA that was brought to Madeira in the late 1800s as a replacement for vines killed by oidium or phylloxera.

The Cigar Box story is romantic, but I have found no evidence to back it. There is a variety in the USA with the synonym Cigar Box but TV Munson wrote that although it is easily confused with Jacquet, it is actually another species

From "Foundations of American grape culture" by TV Munson, circa 1909

(Note the Lenoir is a synonym ofr Jacquez/Jacquet, and my emphasis)

Vu ipina-Vinifera Hybrids
OHIO (Syn. Cigar Box). From some grape-cuttings left in a cigar box at the residence of
the elder Longworth of Cincinnati, some vines were grown, which attracted attention, and became
scatteringly disseminated, and confused in description with the Lenoir by writers on grapes, and
put down by some as a synonym of it (see Bushberg Manual, pp. 164-5). Having obtained vines
of this from Mr. Elbert Wakeman, of Millneck, L. I., obtained by him from Mr. G. W. Campbell,
of Ohio, I have carefully studied it and find, beyond doubt, that it is a Vulpina (Riparia) x
Vinifera hybrid, that, in general aspect, would be easily mistaken for a variety of the Southern
iEstivalis class (V. Bourquiniana), where Mr. Isidor Bush placed it. At first glance, the vine
in foliage reminds one of Lenoir, but the analysis quickly shows it to be really widely different.


I doubt this subject is of much interest to the majority, but I'd be pleased to pass my information to Peter Reutter if he wants to update the MadeiraWineGuide -- I can be emailed at peter (at) pinotage (dot) org

Peter, if you are on Madeira I'd really appreciate a tasting note and your impressions of a wine made from Jacquet.

And, of course, would be delighted to hear from anyone with any further information.

[Roy Hersh]

Thanks Peter M.

Peter Reuter lives in German and is a practicing doctor there. He would be happy to receive your information, but have no fear ... he checks in here at least once per week, so he'll see this post of yours for sure and will reach out to you, I'm sure.

Glad you joined us ... now back to your Pinotage. One day I hope to drink some So. African wines with you. Mine are getting long in the tooth with most coming from 1995-1999 picked up during my trips during the early part of this decade. I have one ultra-rare bottle that I'd love to sell, but I don't know anybody who is that crazy into SA wines to even consider it.
It is a 1/2 bottle that sold for nearly 30,000 ZAR some years back. Mine was hand carried back, directly from the source. If you have any suggestions, please email me at roy@fortheloveofport.com

Thank you!

Roy

[Peter May]

Roy

I think you'll see a world of difference between the wines made 95-99 and those being made now, on the otherhand those old wines have aged nicely now.

I am intrigued what on earth could have cost 30,000 ZAR ten years ago; that would have been 3000 pounds or 6000 dollars....

Even today the most expensive SA wine sells at around 45 pounds 90 USD a bottle.

Would your wine be a historic bottle, maybe a pre-phylloxera Constantia?

[Roy Hersh]

Peter,

I spent my time in SA in 2001/2002/2003 and bought older vintages and some young ones on each trip and carried 24 bottles back each year. From an initial six cases I am down to a mixture of the best of the oldies.

The bottle I was talking about is a 1974 Deetlef's Muscat d'Alexandrie "Philippus Petrus Deetlef" and at the famous SA wine auction (I forget but it was circa 2003/2004) it did fetch the 29,000 ZAR price, which is what Manuka (which has only 3 left) is selling them for today). More recently:

IOL: Record price paid for SA bottle of wine. A bottle of Deetlefs 1974 Muscat D'Alexandrie has been auctioned in Italy for €3 130 (about R31 000), a record for a 375ml bottle of South African wine. I'd happily sell my bottle for anywhere near that kind of price.

[Peter Reutter]

Dear Peter, dear Roy

I am glad you researched the Jacquet-topic so extensively. I looked up all the literature and any information on the internet and the results are inconclusive.
So I asked the department of ampelography at the German Weinbaufachschule Geisenheim, one of the oldest facilities for the research on grapes in Europe.
The answer has not been received yet, but the more I think about it, the more likely it seems to be that the "Jacquet" is indeed a hybrid.
I will keep you informed on the results from Geisenheim and I will update the MadeiraWineGuide accordingly . And yes I will taste the "Jaci-juice" next time I visit Madeira island, but I'm afraid this will not be before 2010, since we have allready different planes for 2008 and 2009.

Best
Peter

[Peter May]

Hi Peter

I will be glad to hear of the results of your enquiry*.


There are three matters

1) The identity of Jacquet
2) The identity of the 'Cigar Box Grape'
3) The identity of the grape that is supposed to have come from Madeira

My researches show that all three are different:

1) I am certain Jacquet is a hybrid that came to Madeira after 1865, when a list of varieties grown on the island then does not mention it, but does mention Isabella another American variety. It most likely arrived in 1883 as part of a package of 60,000 American varieties brought in by the Madeira government nurseries to restock devastated vineyards.

It is impossible that Jacquet is pure Vinifera (as stated on the Madeira website) because it is phylloxera resistant and used as rootstock for that reason in Europe. It is also Pierces Disease resistant and grows inTexas where no vinifera can survive

2) The Cigar Box grape is likely a variety known as Ohio

3) The mysterious grape that is supposed to have come from Madeira to the USA is said to be a variety called Louisiana/Rulander of which TV Munson says "Louisiana (or Rulander) was known in the Madeira Isles as Malmse, though not the true Malmse, before it was known in this country, and was there known to have come at an early period from France, so I was informed by Mr. Casper Wilde of New Orleans, who was well versed in the history of this class of grapes."



I am confident of 1 & 2 having spent too many hours on research. For 3 I have done little more than quote Munson


*If you get the chance I'd be grateful if you'd ask Geisenheim if they know of any Pinotage growing in Germany

[Peter May]

Peter,

I The bottle I was talking about is a 1974 Deetlef's Muscat d'Alexandrie "Philippus Petrus Deetlef" .

Ahhhhhhhhhh....................

I remember the fuss about that.

From their website

THE STORY
More than a quarter of a century ago, my late father, Philippus Petrus Deetlefs and a winemaker friend entered into a wager. The friend claimed that it was impossible to mature a Muscat D’ Alexandrie or Hanepoot, as it is known in South Africa, for any significant length of time.

My father, however was convinced that it could be done and filled a third of a tank with Hanepoot lees and two thirds with fortified Hanepoot Wine and closed it down.

In 1989 I was winemaker and due to a huge crop needed all possible tank space in the cellar. I asked my father whether we could get rid of the "old wine" in the sealed tank. He said: "Let’s taste it first".

Now, more than thirty years later, we have the excellent result of this wager between two friends who have both since passed away -unique to any other product regarding The Story, The Quality, The Price and the Growth Potential...


What is the current cost of a bottle and where can I buy it?
R31,000 per 375ml bottle.
The Muscat is exclusively available from the estate. Please note that each bottle is hand-packed in a hand-made wooden case (Namibian teak) and it might take up to 45 days to deliver. Each bottle will be accompanied by a certificate of authenticity.

Since when was it available and was it always at this price?

This is best explained by a time-line:

1974 - the wager and the "birth" of this wine
1989 - the tank was opened and tasted
2001 - first sales at R165 / 375ml bottle (±$24)
2002 - 1 bottle earned R31,000 (±$4500) in Rome at a charity auction
2003 - price increased to R550 / 375ml bottle (±$80)
2004 - price increased to R1200 / 375ml bottle (±$175)
2004 - realisation that we had a very rare and valuable item urged us to withdraw the Muscat from the market
2006 - Deetlefs branding was changed to reflect the history and values
2007 - we decided to release small volumes very selectively world-wide
2007 - first bottle sold to a businessman in Singapore at $4500
Approximately 400 bottles were sold before the withdrawal in 2004. A few individuals were fortunate enough to get hold of some. There are currently three bottles that we are aware of (in the old packaging) in a wine shop in Cape Town available for R29,000.


Roy, why not bring that bottle next time you come to England. I'll supply a bottle of Pinotage to have with the main course, and you open the Deetleefs with dessert. What could be fairer :)

[Peter Reutter]

So now after talking to two viticulture experts and spending a couple of hours at the library here is the verdict about the Jacquez grape. (the Geisenheim Insitute did not find time to answer...)
Peter you were abolutely right:
Jacquez is a red grape, an interspecies hybrid of an American Vitis aestivalis an an unknown European Vitis vinifera, most probably developed by natural selction in the Texas area in the early 19th century, exported to and cultivated in Europe after phylloxera, most widely cultivated in Portugal and Madeira island, banned since the 1980ies. Synonyms are countless, amongst others these are Lenoir (esp. in Texas), Alabama, Black El Paso, Black Spanish (not to be confused with Long Black Spanish) and Sherry of the south (I love that one).
I will be happy to correct this topic in the next update of the MadeiraWineGuide. A big THANK YOU again to all of you who spent time and thoughts on this subject. It is your feedback and effort that keeps a project like the MWG going.

Best
Peter

[Ron Winters]

Hopefully this will reach Peter May-

I am writng a Thesis Paper on the Origns and History of the Lenoir (Jacquez) Grape for my Enology program. Does anyone on this forum have a contact for Casper Wilde of New Orleans? It is my hope to interview him for inclusion in my study.

Thanks
R.L. Winters
Master Horticulturist
Fairhaven Vineyards
http://www.fairhavenvineyards.com