Arrufiac (or Arrufiat) is a white

French wine French wine is produced throughout all of France in quantities between 50 and 60 million hectolitres per year, or 7–8 billion bottles. France is one of the largest wine producers in the world. French wine traces its history to th ...

grape variety This list of grape varieties includes cultivated grapes, whether used for wine, or eating as a table grape, fresh or dried (raisin, Zante currant, currant, sultana (grape), sultana). For a complete list of all grape species, including those unimp ...

Arrufiac

Vitis International Variety Catalogue The Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) is a database of various species and varieties/cultivars of grapevine, the genus ''Vitis''. VIVC is administered by the Geilweilerhof Institute for Grape Breeding (''Institut für Rebenzüchtung G ...

, accessed on June 26, 2010 that is primarily planted in the

Gascony Gascony (; ) was a province of the southwestern Kingdom of France that succeeded the Duchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until the French Revolution (1789–1799), it was part of the combined Province of Guyenne and Gascon ...

region of South West France. It is a secondary grape in the wines from the

Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh Madiran wine () is produced around the village of Madiran in Gascony under three '' Appellations d'Origine Contrôlées'' (AOCs): Madiran for red wines and Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh and Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh Sec for white wines. The production area ...

Appellation d'origine contrôlée In France, the ''appellation d'origine contrôlée'' (, ; abbr. AOC ) is a label that identifies an agricultural product whose stages of production and processing are carried out in a defined geographical area – the ''terroir'' – and using ...

'' (AOC). J. Robinson ''Jancis Robinson's Wine Course'' Third Edition pg 100 Abbeville Press 2003 While the grape has had a long history being blended with Petit Courbu in Gascon wines, it has only recently experienced a resurgence of interest in the late 20th century following the release of white blends from Andrė Dubosc of Producteurs Plaimont, one of the region's largest co-operative wineries, in the 1980s.J. Robinson ''Jancis Robinson's Guide to Wine Grapes'' pg 24 Oxford University Press 1996

Wine regions

Arrufiac has had a long history of use in the wines of Gascony, particularly those from the AOC region of Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh, covering the same area as

Madiran Madiran () is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in south-western France. It is the centre of a wine-producing area. Madiran wine Wine is produced around Madiran under three '' Appellations d'Origine Contrôlées'' (AOCs): Madir ...

, and those from the

Béarn AOC Béarn () is an ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (AOC) for wine in South West France. It is located in the area of intersection of three French departments: Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Hautes-Pyrénées and Gers; and two regions: Aquitaine and M ...

in the Vic-Bilh hills. Oz Clarke ''Encyclopedia of Grapes'' pg 38 Harcourt Books 2001 There, the grape was often blended with Petit Courbu which, along with Arrufiac's distinctive gunflint

aroma An odor (American English) or odour (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is a smell or a scent caused by one or more volatilized chemical compounds generally found in low concentrations that humans and many animals can perceive v ...

, gave the wines of Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh a distinctive contrast to the white wines of nearby

Jurançon Jurançon (; ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France. It is part of the traditional province of Béarn. Population See also *Jurançon AOC, a wine from this commune *Communes of the Pyrénées-A ...

. Additionally, winemakers in Gascony have blended Arrufiac with the other grapes of Jurançon,

Petit Manseng Petit Manseng (sometimes translated: Small Manseng, rarely "Little Manseng") is a white wine grape variety that is grown primarily in South West France. It produces the highest quality wine of any grape in the Manseng family. The name is deriv ...

and

Gros Manseng Gros Manseng (sometimes translated: Large Manseng, rarely "Big Manseng") is a white wine grape variety that is grown primarily in South West France, and is part of the Manseng family. It produces dry wines in the Jurançon and Béarn regions ...

Wine styles

Arrufiac is used primarily as a blending wine with its medium body and relatively low

alcohol levels Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as alc/vol or ABV) is a common measure of the amount of alcohol contained in a given alcoholic beverage. It is defined as the volume the ethanol in the liquid would take if separated from the rest of the solution, ...

for a wine grown in southern France. In blends, its main contribution is in the aroma and bouquet, with wines featuring Arrufiac often marked by a distinctive gunflint note.

Synonyms

Arrufiac and its wines are known under a variety of synonyms including Ambre, Arafiat, Arrefiac, Arrefiat, Arrufiat, Arufiat, Raffiac, Raffiat, Refiat, Rouffiac Femelle, Ruffiac, Ruffiac Blanc, and Rufiat.

References

{{reflist White wine grape varieties