Viognier

In the beginning, wine was divided into Chocolate and Vanilla—a.k.a. Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. When people wanted a red wine, they asked for Cabernet. When they wanted white wine, for Chardonnay. This lasted for years.

Then wine went ABC—Anything But Chardonnay (or, because the acronym is fortunate, Cabernet). To the extent that they once wanted Chardonnay, for instance, people then did not.

But of course people had to have some white wine, and so they went looking. Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc didn’t make the cut, for the most part because they were too high in acidity. Gewurztraminer didn’t, either, because it was too aromatic (or difficult to pronounce?).

But something did work—big time—and it was Viognier [vee-oh-NYAY].

In 1965, the globe in its entirety was mother to but 20 acres of Viognier vines—all of them in the northern Rhône of France. Today, ten times that much grows there, added to Viognier vines on 7,000 acres elsewhere in France, on some 2,000 in the United States—and on scores more in Australia, South Africa, Italy and a dozen other countries.

What happened?

Yummies
In short, people found that Viognier has all the yummies Chardonnay has—and then some—without Chardonnay’s sometimes tedious oak flavors and aromas.

Viognier sports gobs of tastes (apricot, white peach, butter, mango, kiwi, butter, pineapple, ripe pear—to name a few), creaminess (sometimes even thickness), low acidity, above-average alcohol and a finish like crème fraiche, at once soft and a tad tangy.

Wine scientists have isolated some of the terpenes in Viognier and note that they are similar to those found in Gewurztraminer and Riesling.

And please to note, Chardonnay lovers, that Viognier struts all this stuff without having to touch one splinter of wood. (Occasionally, Viognier is oaked, but generally gingerly.)

As a grape
For all its gutsy flavor, Viognier is precariously difficult to grow. Its berries often set unevenly, and leaf roll virus (which leaves grapes unripe) is a common worry.

Because of its thin skin, Viognier is susceptible to mildew, but nonetheless must ripen for a lengthy time in order to guarantee that its panoply of delectable flavors develops. (Viognier vines are often the last to be picked.) The long ripening ensures high alcohol (at least 13%), hefty weight and effusive aromas.

A warm climate helps, obviously, and that is where most Viognier is planted. But again, for Viognier’s expansive flavors to shine, vines ought to be a minimum of 15-20 years old. Because the newfound demand for Viognier is barely that old, however, many Viognier vines throughout the world are still infants.

Around the world
Viognier’s throne room is in the northern Rhône, in Condrieu (and in an enclave of Condrieu, Château-Grillet, France’s smallest appellation contrôlée). A small percentage of Viognier is permitted mixed with Côte Rôtie’s Syrah, for reasons that history has swallowed, although in practice little if any is used.

Viognier’s plantings in France now extend through the southern Rhône, to Provence and the Ardèche, and over the Languedoc-Roussillon.

Australia grows a good deal of Viognier, as does California, especially in Mendocino and Napa counties. And an interesting development with Viognier is its success in central Italy.

In the cellar and at the table
The seductions of Viognier are its heady perfume and sexy texture—both of which tend not to last beyond a year or two in bottle. Some Viognier does cellar adequately, especially from Condrieu, but even that matures capriciously. With Viognier, you know what you will get early on, and cannot be sure if it will still be there later. Just do it.

The flavors and aromas of Viognier can be so exotic that it is as enjoyable a wine by itself as a wine can be, as an apéritif, for example, or a stand-alone sip.

Beware its rather stiff alcohol. Wines high in alcohol aggravate salty flavors (they make salt “saltier”). Also, high-alcohol wines overwhelm delicate or finely etched flavors in food. Many a diaphanous sauce, deftly made, is wiped off the palate by a wine high in alcohol.

Alcohol in a wine is nicely complemented by sweetness, however (think Port). So, dishes that incorporate a bit of sugar work well with Viognier. For instance, a lightly salted pork roast prepared with apricots would be killer, as might duck with orange or cherries.