Designation (also base variety, base grape) for the determining grape variety or the wine with the main share in a cuvée. As a rule, the share must be at least 50% so that this variety gives the wine its character (but this is not a wine law requirement). If necessary, however, there can also be two or more basic varieties if a larger number is permitted, which is often the case especially with wines from southern countries. An extreme case is Châteauneuf-du-Pape with 13 possible varieties, which is, however, only fully used by a few producers. See also under winemaking.
The term is used for the simplest quality or lowest quality level of a winery or producer in the quality pyramid. In Bordeaux, the terms second wine and possibly third wine are used for this; in the VDP classification model, this is analogously the estate wine. See also under Grand Cru and quality system.
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Thomas Götz
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