Solaris is a

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry (botany), berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non-Climacteric (botany), climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of ...

used for white

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are ...

. It was created in 1975 at the grape breeding institute in

Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

by Norbert Becker.Winegrowers.info: Vine variety: Solaris
accessed on March 25, 2008

Pedigree

Becker created Solaris by crossing the variety Merzling (which is

Seyve-villard 5276 Seyval blanc (or Seyve-Villard hybrid number 5276winepros.com.au ) is a hybrid wine grape variety used to make white wines. Its vines ripen early, are productive and are suited to fairly cool climates. Seyval blanc is grown mainly in England,wine ...

x (

Riesling Riesling (, ; ) is a white grape variety that originated in the Rhine region. Riesling is an aromatic grape variety displaying flowery, almost perfumed, aromas as well as high acidity. It is used to make dry, semi-sweet, sweet, and sparkling ...

Pinot gris Pinot Gris, Pinot Grigio (, ) or Grauburgunder is a white wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. Thought to be a mutant clone of the Pinot Noir variety, it normally has a grayish-blue fruit, accounting for its name, but the gr ...

)) as mother vine with Gm 6493 (which is Zarya Severa x

Muscat Ottonel Muscat Ottonel or Muskat-Ottonel (in Germany) is a white wine grape variety that is a member of the Muscat family of ''Vitis vinifera''.J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz ''Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including ...

) as the father vine.Vitis International Variety Catalogue: Solaris
, accessed on March 25, 2009 Gm 6493 was one of several crossings created in

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

in 1964 by Professor Vilém Kraus. Kraus offered several of his crosses to Dr. Helmut Becker at the

Geisenheim grape breeding institute The Geisenheim Grape Breeding Institute was founded in 1872 and is located in the town of Geisenheim, in Germany's Rheingau region. In 1876 Swiss-born professor Hermann Müller joined the institute, where he developed his namesake grape variety M ...

, where additional work was carried out, and where his plants were given "Gm" serial numbers for Geisenheim. Gm 6493 has previously been erroneously stated to be Saperawi Severni x Muscat Ottonel but is now identified as Zarya Severa x Muscat Ottonel.Vitis International Variety Catalogue: Geisenheim 6493
, accessed on March 26, 2009 Solaris is stated as a ''

Vitis vinifera ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, is a species of flowering plant, native to the Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean region, Central Europe, and southwestern Asia, from Morocco and Portugal north to southern Germany and east to northern ...

'' grape, although it contains traces of hybrid grapes in its pedigree. It is an approved as a ''

'' grape by EU, to grow and make wine of. It is formally listed as a ''Vitis vinifera''

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...

. It received varietal protection in 2001. Solaris was the product of a programme for breeding disease-resistant grape varieties, and has good resistance against

fungal A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...

attacks. As it is a hardy variety, it is commonly grown in northern European countries with marginal climate for winemaking, such as

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

the Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Nether ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establishe ...

and Sweden. As of 2007, there were of Solaris in

, of which were in

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden ...

, where Freiburg is located.Wein-Plus: Solaris
accessed on March 6, 2013 Vin belge millésime 2018 Solaris 018

Properties

Solaris is an early ripening variety with good resistance against fungal diseases and frost. It gives wines which have fruity and aromatic aromas with hints of gooseberry, citrus and elderflower with high acidity. It is considered to be suitable for

dessert wine Dessert wines, sometimes called pudding wines in the United Kingdom, are sweet wines typically served with dessert. There is no simple definition of a dessert wine. In the UK, a dessert wine is considered to be any sweet wine drunk with a meal ...

s, as it ripens to high

must weight Must weight is a measure of the amount of sugar in grape juice (must) and, hence, indicates the amount of alcohol that could be produced if it is all fermented to alcohol, rather than left as residual sugar.

References

{{Hybrid grape varieties Hybrid grape varieties