Seyval Blanc, a United Grape of America

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Behold Seyval Blanc,

The Frozen White (Wine) Witch of the North

Seyve-Villard 5276, which when bastardized is how it got its actual name Seyval Blanc, the “Blanc” being the color of the grape and wine). Like many of the other North American hybrid grapes, Seyval Blanc has a propensity for thriving in colder climates; its vines remain robust and alive during even the coldest winters, and the grapes have an especially short growing season (only about 100 days between bloom and full ripeness). These qualities, along with the fact that Seyval Blanc tends to produce drier wines with sharp acid and minerality not that uncommon from Burgundy chardonnays or Bordeaux/Loire Sauvignon Blancs, have made Seyval Blanc a favorite of winemakers all over the Midwest and eastern portion of the United States; in fact, Seyval Blanc is the most popular grape grown in the eastern United States, and you can find it as far south as Virginia (where it has become immensely popular as a wine grape) up through Massachusetts and Maine.

It is also a very popular grape in colder upper Midwestern states such as Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Missouri, and there are some Oregonian vintners who grow and produce the grape as well. Quite a bit of Seyval is planted in Canada (where it is typically turned into either ice wine or Botrytisized dessert wine) and it’s the main wine grape of England and the UK, of all places. But the one area where Seyval Blanc seems to have really taken hold and prospered is the Finger Lakes region of New York. Perhaps it has something to do with the Lake Effect up there, or else the higher altitudes of that region creating a cycle of warm days that give way to cool nights (really the ideal growing conditions for most wine grapes), but it seems like every winery in the Finger Lakes region produces their own Seyval Blanc, and most follow the classic Seyval pattern of crisp, minerally dryness with lots of sharp, clean acidity.

Seyval Blanc is truly a delicious wine, though, and one of the real undiscovered gems in this country not yet uncovered by the wine intelligentsia. Her heart may be as cold as ice, and her tongue might be acid sharp, but this United Grape of America Seyval Blanc is
a wine you can warmly embrace, enjoy, and truly fall in love with, despite her
upbringing and where she might come from.

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What It Looks Like, What It Smells Like, and What It Tastes Like

Seyval Blanc looks like:

Seyval Blanc smells like:

Seyval Blanc tastes like:

Ahh, the scent of a Seyval. Most likely there will be stone fruit – apricots, peaches, nectarines – and you may also get some tropical citrus notes on the nose as well. You should be able to tell right away whether the wine will be dry or off-dry just by sniffing it. A little bit of sweetness carries a long way on the nose of one of these wines. You might pick up some minerality on the nose and, if the wine aged or fermented in oak or underwent a malolactic fermentation, you might pick up some buttery scents on the wine as well.

Interestingly, this is a wine that actually tastes very much like what it smells like, although the tropical citrus flavors, led by lemon and grapefruit, will overshadow the stone fruit flavors in the wine. You’ll also notice the minerality on the palate as well. Seyval Blancs are typically produced in either dry or off-dry varieties; wines from colder climates such as Canada, England, the Finger Lakes of New York, and the upper, upper Midwest will be drier, crisper, and more acidic, while the wines produced in more southerly confines such as Missouri, Virginia, Maryland, and West Virginia will be richer and rounder, with more sweetness to them. Seyval Blancs are also notorious for having some length to them, nothing overpowering on the aftertaste, but it will definitely stay with you after the swallow.

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• As we mentioned above, Seyval Blanc loves the cold climates, which actually makes it one of the primary grapes grown for wine in England and the United Kingdom. I know what you’re thinking: England? Wine? Don’t they just guzzle it and collect it over there, not grow it and press it themselves? Well, no actually. There is an English wine community. It may not be thriving, but it does exist, and Seyval Blanc is its most popular grape, due to its winter hardiness and short ripening period (only 100 days from bloom to ripe fruit). Interestingly, Seyval’s presence and popularity has put the UK at odds with the rest of the European Union, which demands that all grapes grown for winemaking in the EU be of Vitis vinifera stock only; because Seyval Blanc is a hybrid (more on this below), the other Euros don’t like it that much and have effectively banned the UK from being part of the wine-growing committees of the EU.

• Seyval Blanc is a very popular grape in Canada, where it’s grown in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia and sometimes turned into a dessert wine, as Seyval is susceptible to botrytis. It is also the most popular wine grape grown in the eastern part of the United States.

• You may remember the discussion in our previous Vignoles post about French hybridizers Mr. Ravat and Mr. Seibel, both of whom were in some way responsible for the creation of the Vignoles grape. Well, once again we have Mr. Seibel to thank for the existence of Seyval Blanc as well. Despite the actual hybridization of the grape being conducted by Mr. Seyve and Mr. Villard, the grapes they cross-pollinated were actually two of Mr. Seibel’s original creations: Seibel 4986 (commonly referred to as Rayon d’Or; not to be confused with actual Rayon, which your tracksuit is probably made of) and Seibel 5656, which doesn’t have a cool nickname. To complicate this even more, Seyval Blanc (which also goes by the far too technical name of Seyve-Villard 5276 – much sexier than Seyval Blanc) can be used as the “male” grape in a hybrid that creates another North American grape called St. Pepin. And now you know why we decided to stick with only three
United Grapes of America this time around. Either they start multiplying like Gremlins,
or else the clones will probably start falling apart like Michael Keaton in “Multiplicity.”

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Fun Facts to Impress/Bore People At Parties

From Brein’s Brain to Your Plate

“So the first Seyval we tried was that one from Virginia, and because it was kind of buttery and had that hint of grain or barley or whatever on the very end of it, I thought those two things would make an ideal pairing for this wine. There’s a couple of ways to do it, though. First, you might want to try steaming some faro or barley or even some buckwheat, and also steam some artichoke and onions along with it. Throw those all into a bowl, pour a little clarified butter over top, and that’s going to pair really wonderfully with your warmer climate Seyval.”

“The other option is a dish close to my heart, since it celebrates my heritage and the way I grew up. Now I love Jewish food, and this was the first thing I thought of when I tasted that particular wine: Kasha Varnishkes. For those who don’t speak Yiddish, kasha translates into “buckwheat porridge” basically, and it was a common dish among the poor Jews who lived in central and Eastern Europe. Basically, the dish is buckwheat or barley mixed with egg bow or bowtie pasta. You simmer both in chicken stock and add in an egg for texture, and also some garlic and onions for flavor. The bowties help collect and catch the barley so you can eat it. It might not sound like much ,but trust me, it’s delicious and easy to make and it will do wonders with this Seyval Blanc.”

“Now that drier Seyval from the colder climate, that’s an almost entirely different kettle of fish. But I think I’ve got a good pairing with it. I’d go with a nice wedge of blue cheese. The wine’s got jsut enough sweetness and strong acidity to make it a really nice pairing with a strong blue, like a Maytag of a Point Reyes or even a clasic Roquefort. Maybe even a Gorgonzola too. Stilton might be a bit too much, but definitely a strong, pungent, salty blue cheese. Also, slice up some pears and maybe even some green apple slices too. Enjoy those with a drier, crisper, more citric Seyval like that, and I think you’ve got a perfect appetizer to start a meal, or a nice, healthier way to end it. Wow. Vegetarian options with the first pairing, and fruit and cheese with the second. I’m getting way too healthy for my own good. I need a straight cheeseburger wine soon.”

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Chef Brein Clements is the chef/owner of Restaurant Omakase in Riverside, CA, which is quickly becoming SoCal’s answer to El Bulli. Minus the molecular gastronomy. He began his cooking career at Domaine Chandon in the Napa Valley and moved on to become Chef de Cuisine at the famed Balboa Bay Club before opening his own restaurant. Plus he’s only 28. My man knows his wine and he knows his food. Each week he’ll provide ingredient and dish recommendations that match up well with the week’s forgotten grape. You should heed what he says. No, seriously, heed it.

NV Botham Vineyards Seyval Blanc

Our example of a Seyval from a colder climate is Peter’s version of the grape, a non-vintage dry Seyval crafted in Wisconsin but from Finger Lakes, New York fruit. And guess what – it’s absolutely delightful! A bright pale yellow color to the wine with a really, rich nose, but you can immediately tell it’s going to be a dry white wine, not off-dry or semi-sweet. Some drier stone fruit on the nose with a lot of minerality. On the palate, this wine was nicely balanced with its acids, starting with a lot of green apple on the tip of the tongue and then moving through more lemon/grapefruit/dry citrus flavors as it progressed down the throat. This is a wine that really snapped crisply when we tried it, and held its acids well through the hint of aftertaste it had, not overly long, but enough there to keep you (and it) honest. Suffice to say, we really, really enjoyed this wine and will go back for more. You can get your own bottle and try it for yourself by going to the Botham Winery website and buying it directly from Peter. Definitely do it; you’ll be glad you did.

2008 Veramar Vineyard Virginia Seyval Blanc

In the spirit of equal fairness and because this whole United Grapes of America process has gotten us excited about all the different states growing wine, we decided to try a Seyval from a slightly warmer and more southerly climate, and our brand-new Friend James Bogarty from Veramar Vineyards in Virginia (wow, that’s a lot of V’s) was nice enough to send us a bottle of his most recent Seyval vintage to sample. And even though it was the same grape, it was remarkably different than the Wisconsin version of the grape. It still had some of the same stone fruit on the nose, but less minerals and a lot more butter on it (we haven’t gotten confirmation, but we’re pretty sure this Seyval spent some time in oak, or at the very least went through malolactic fermentation). We also got fresh off-the-three apricots. On the tongue, this wine had a lot more swetness than the Wisconsin Seyval, but still remained off-dry with a brisk lemon-fresh and tropical citrus flavor. The wine had a decent amount of length to it as well, and the hint of puffed rice or barley on the swallow (hence our food pairings). This was still a delightful wine, different from the Wisconsin Seyval, and you can taste the warmer climate and the oak/malo on the wine. You must pick up a bottle of this too, just to compare it to the Wisconsin Seyval and decide which state reigns supreme.

isit the Veramar Vineyards website, or better yet, visit

heir winery and tasting room yourself to try their

delicious Seyval Blanc.

Our Friend of the Forgotten Grapes Tasting Squadron tastes all of the wines you see here ahead of time to ensure that you aren’t getting anything rotten or clunky. We also try to ensure that most of the wines highlighted here are affordably priced ($20 or less) so you can try them out for yourself without having to take out a second mortgage or sacrificing your kid (or future kid’s) college fund to do so. Lastly, the Friends of the Forgotten Grapes has relationships with all the fine wine purveyors we link to in this section. We know them, we trust them. You can order these wines from them online right now and be trying them out in the next couple of days. Do yourself a favor and order from them by using the links below. It’s totally worth it. And tell them that ForgottenGrapes.com sent you, too.

Coming from and thriving in as cold climates as Seyval Blanc does, you’d think that the wines produced from the grape would be thin, pale, and perhaps even a little green vis-a-vis some of the cooler weather German varietals. But you’d be wrong. Seyval Blancs tend to have a very bright pale yellow/golden color. Not nearly as rich and golden as a Viognier or a Chardonnay, but similar to Semillons and Sauvignon Blancs that are out there. As always, aging a Seyval in oak will only deepen and intensify the golden color, but more than likely, if you’ve picked up a Seyval, it’s going to be bright light yellow.

Go On. Try It. You’ll Like It.

Okay, so she’s not really a witch (no wine ever is, unless it’s corked), but with her love of colder temperatures and the sharp acidic tartness that she imparts into the wines she bears from her loins, it’s certainly an apt description to describe our final United Grape of America, Seyval Blanc (SAY-vahl BLAHNK).

Like many of the others we’ve highlighted during this month long journey into the deeper heart of United States winemaking, Seyval Blanc too is a hybrid, a 1930's creation of a French hybridizing team made up of Bertille Seyve and his son-in-law Villard (like other hybridizers, they named and numbered all of their grapes after themselves, in this case the hyphenated

But Don’t Just Take Our Word for It...

Whenever possible, Friends of the Forgotten Grapes will offer up a short interview with a winemaker working with the week’s featured Forgotten Grape. It’s his or her chance to tell you a little bit more about who they are, the winery and wines, and how he or she got started working with this particular Forgotten Grape. We do this because we want you to get to know the winemakers and better understand their mind set and passions for particular Forgotten Grapes. We also do this because we’re givers and only want to make you happy. Isn’t that enough for you? What more do you want?

This week’s interview is with Peter Botham, owner and winemaker of Botham Vineyards in Barneveld, Wisconsin. Yes, you read that correctly: Wisconsin. It is our last “United Grape of America” post for the year after all. Peter was born and raisedin Wisconsin, but it took a move to that other hotbed of wine Maryland for college to give Peter the winemaking jones. He eventually moved back to Wisconsin and decided to keep going with his winemaking, planing grapes that would thrive in the indigenous area. One of which happened to be Seyval Blanc. Peter is also a fan of fast vintage race cars and actually hosts a celebration of both Wine and vintage cars at Botham every year. How’s that for variety and the spice of life? Anyway, here’s Peter:

Friends of the Forgotten Grapes: We’re always interested in hearing how small independent winemakers dabbling with Forgotten Grapes got their start in winemaking, particularly when they’re producing wines in places somewhat off the beaten path. So what drew you to winemaking and how did you get your start?

Peter Botham: I gravitated to the wine industry initially as a consumer like most people. That evolved into a more serious approach which led me to work for a few wineries. At a certain point I felt that I had enough in hand to give it a go on my own and the rest is history. I started in the wine industry about 22 years ago.

FoFG: What attracted you to the Seyval Blanc grape in particular and why did you start working with this varietal?

PB: We have always felt that wines should have a sense of PLACE. For me there is no point in producing Chardonnay or Cabernet or other more traditional grapes. Those varietals have absolutely nothing to do with Wisconsin. We grow our reds, and because of our climate, purchase our white fruit. Keeping in mind my prior statement, Seyval is a cold climate varietal that is a great example of what can happen in the bottle with wine from the upper Midwest. Our Seyval fruit comes from the Finger Lakes region of New York, and is very versatile. It does well fermented into a number of different styles. I am attracted to its rather clean presentation as a dry wine. Not that I don't go for the occasional big buttery blast of Chardonnay, it's just nice to have an alternative and this fruit seems to lend itself well to food. Enhancing but not drowning a good piece of fish, for example.

FoFG: We’ll admit that the amount of time we’ve spent in Wisconsin has been sadly limited, but what makes Wisconsin a good area for wine and growing wine grapes? Or is it a good area for growing grapes and producing wine?

PB: Honestly there is nothing good about growing fruit here. The winters are too cold and long, and our growing season is too short. Only a few red varietals manage the climate with any consistency. I've been growing fruit here for 20 years or so and I still ask myself why. That being said, we do produce some wonderful products in spite of the problems. As a consumer the approach must be open-minded, however. Those who are married to California varietals will probably find our products to be on the "light" side. No problem, but overripe 15% alcohol wines are not to my liking and I don't think they lend themselves to food very well. They seem burnt. Our wines are very well crafted regardless of your tastes. It's just a matter of opening your palate to new experiences.

FoFG: What are some of the other wine varietals you’re currently working with or plan to start experimenting with in the near future?

PB: I'm pretty much always experimenting with something. The latest example is Geisenheim. Again, another cold climate varietal that produces an extraordinary fruit. It still needs some tweaking but it's really special stuff. That's our second vintage of that product and honestly it takes me 3 or 4 stabs at a wine before I get it just where I want it to be.

FoFG: Since I know we have several Forgotten Grapes readers in Wisconsin as well as Minnesota and the Chicagoland area, please tell us how Forgotten Grapes lovers in the Upper Midwest can come to visit you to taste and buy your wine, and what should they expect?

PB: Our vineyard and winery is located on a hilltop in the southwest part of Wisconsin. It's known as the Driftless area or the Uplands of Iowa county. Rolling hills and expansive views are the norm for the area. We are surrounded by Nature Conservancy property and our tasting room is housed in a restored 104 year old barn. Quite frankly there is nothing quite like it in the state, although I'm biased. As for the wines, as I

said before bring an inquisitive and open minded palate. It will be rewarded with well crafted and extremely drinkable products, inexpensive to boot. To find us and learn

more you can visit our website bothamvineyards.com

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