Is Tinta Francisca really Pinot Noir?

Dec 21, 2003 1 Replies
B

In his book Rich Rare and Red, (Wine Appreciation Guild, SF, 2003) Ben Hawkins writes "...in 1093, a young French adventurer, Count Henry of Burgundy, married Teresa the illegitimate daughter of King Alfonso Vi of Castile and Leon; the king threw in the then obscure Country of Portugal as part of the dowry. The count, being a cousin of of the powerful Duke of Burgundy, was partial to the sword and the grape. It is said that the native Galician wines were too thin for his robust taste and that he became homesick for the rich strong wines of his home country; so he imported cuttings of the Pinot Noir grape variety from Burgundy into Portugal hoping to producer fuller wines. The Portuguese, with diluted chauvinism soon renamed this the Tinta Francisca. Today Tinta Francisca is still one of the dominant grape varieties used in the Douro Valley." (page 6.)



Pinot Noir as one of the main grapes of Port? I'd always heard it attributed to other french varietals. Anybody know anything on this point?


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M

There are two varieties bearing France in their name: Tinta Francisca (recently officially renamed Tinta Franca) and Touriga Francesa. They are not Pinot Noir, as to my knowledge, and I never have heard any claims that it be so.

Btw, the Port Wine Institute (IVP) in its old form doesn't exist anymore, it merged with the lesser know CIRRD to form the IVDP:

| On 26th November, the Port and Douro Wine Institute (IVDP) came | into being, and is now the body responsible for the supervision | of the Douro Demarcated Region (DDR), its viticulture and | winemaking, and whose headquarters are in Peso da Régua. | | The new institutional organisation of the DDR (Decree-Laws | 278/2003, 6th November), is based on two principles: that a | single public body should manage both the ‘Porto’ and ‘Douro’ | appellations of origin and the ‘Terras Durienses’ geographical | indication, and this body should be part of an interprofessional | model. | | Thus, the IVDP is essentially the result of the merger between | Port Wine Institute (IVP) and the Interprofessional Commission | for the Demarcated Region of the Douro (CIRDD); the aim being to | help bring about a concerted strategy on the part of both | production and trade for the management of DDR, one that can | interact with the State’s obligations regarding the | administration of the appellations of origin. | | Through the IVDP, the State is responsible for certifying the | wines from the DDR and for supervising the sector; whereas trade | and production are charged with the entire responsibility of | managing and coordinating viticulture and winemaking in the | Douro.

(From a pop-up-window at )

I love the acronym "DDR", the official short-hand for "German Democratic Republic" (Deutsche Demokratische Republik).

M.

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