Duras is a traditional French variety of red

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began approximately 8,0 ...

that is mostly grown around the river Tarn, northeast of

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

. It is usually blended with other traditional varieties, but production has been declining in recent years. Despite the name the grape appears to have no connection with the Côtes de Duras east of

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

, and is not grown there today.J. Robinson ''Vines, Grapes & Wines'' pg 205 Mitchell Beazley 1986 Nor is there any known link with the Durasa of Piedmont.

History

Viticulture came to the Tarn with the Romans, but little is known of the history of Duras.

DNA fingerprinting DNA profiling (also called DNA fingerprinting and genetic fingerprinting) is the process of determining an individual's deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) characteristics. DNA analysis intended to identify a species, rather than an individual, is cal ...

has recently suggested that with

Petit Verdot Petit Verdot is a variety of red wine grape, principally used in classic Bordeaux blends. It ripens much later than the other varieties in Bordeaux, often too late, so it fell out of favour in its home region. When it does ripen it adds tannin, ...

from Bordeaux, it is a parent of the Tressot variety.Vitis International Variety Catalogue: Tressot Noir
, accessed on December 15, 2009

Distribution and Wines

Duras is only really found in the upper reaches of the Tarn, in

Gaillac Gaillac (; ) is a commune in the Tarn department in southern France. It had in 2013 a population of 14,334 inhabitants. Its inhabitants are called Gaillacois. Geography Gaillac is a town situated between Toulouse, Albi and Montauban. It has ...

, the

Côtes de Millau South West France, or in French ''Sud-Ouest'', is a wine region in France covering several wine-producing areas situated respectively inland from, and south of, the wine region of Bordeaux.Vins d'Estaing north of

Rodez Rodez (, , ; , ) is a small city and commune in the South of France, about 150 km northeast of Toulouse. It is the prefecture of the department of Aveyron, region of Occitania (formerly Midi-Pyrénées). Rodez is the seat of the communau ...

. It makes robust red wines with a peppery note that are typically blended with other traditional varieties such as Fer and Négrette.

Vine and Viticulture

The vine is susceptible to oidium and

black rot Black rot is a name used for various diseases of cultivated plants caused by fungi or bacteria, producing dark brown discoloration and decay in the leaves of fruit and vegetables: * A disease of the apple, pear and quince caused by a fungus ('' Botr ...

with a tendency to bud early.

Synonyms

Cabernet Duras, Durade, Duras Femelle, Duras Male, Duras Rouge, Durasca, Duraze

References

{{reflist

External links

VIVC Bibliography
Red wine grape varieties