Parentage — Ancient variety of the Béarn foothills
pineapple
quince
candied citrus peel
nutmeg
acacia honey
Budbreak
Early — frost remains a risk in the foothills
Maturity
Very late; left hanging into November or December for passerillage
Leaf
Small, orbicular, five-lobed; thick blade
Bunch
Small, cylindrical, loose
Berry
Very small, spherical, thick golden skin — made to shrivel on the vine
An old vine of the Béarn foothills, Petit Manseng is Jurançon's small-berried treasure. Legend attaches it to the region's proudest hour: at the christening of the future Henri IV in 1553, Jurançon wine is said to have been touched to the infant's lips, with a clove of garlic, in the Béarnais manner.
The grape's method is its own. Thick skins and tiny berries let it hang on the vine deep into autumn, shrivelling by passerillage — wind and sun, never botrytis — into concentrated sweetness cut by electric acidity. The late-harvest moelleux of Jurançon taste of pineapple, quince and nutmeg over a spine of citrus peel, and the same acid makes the dry version one of the most vivid whites of the Pyrenean foothills.
In the blend
Share of this grape in a typical blend of each wine