Trousseau

VIVC records Trousseau under the prime name Trousseau Noir, a black-skinned variety with France as its country of origin. On that record its pedigree, confirmed by DNA markers, has Savagnin (prime name Savagnin Blanc) as one parent; the second parent is unknown. The passport flags offspring, but WineWiki's VIVC-derived lineage data links no children and no full siblings for Trousseau. The same lineage data lists half-siblings of Trousseau, among them Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and Grüner Veltliner.

• VIVC prime name: Trousseau Noir; VIVC variety number 12668; country of origin: France
• Parents: Savagnin (Savagnin Blanc) and an unknown second parent, pedigree confirmed by DNA markers
• Offspring: flagged in the VIVC passport; none linked in WineWiki's lineage data
• Half-siblings in WineWiki's VIVC-derived lineage data include Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and Grüner Veltliner

Trousseau is one of the Jura's red grapes and, like Savagnin and Poulsard, is indigenous to the region. It is one of the five grape varieties Jura wines are made from, alongside Chardonnay, Savagnin, Poulsard and Pinot Noir. In 1936 Arbois, the oldest and largest of the Jura's geographic appellations, was awarded AOC status. Jancis Robinson sums Trousseau up as a "Jura vine making violet-scented wine but overtaken by Pinot Noir".

• Indigenous to the Jura, like Savagnin and Poulsard
• One of the five Jura grape varieties, with Chardonnay, Savagnin, Poulsard and Pinot Noir
• Arbois was awarded AOC status in 1936
• Grown in Iberia under other names, including Bastardo in Portugal

Trousseau is a demanding, late-harvest grape that needs lighter, gravelly, warm soils. Until the effects of climate change became significant, the warmest sites with gravelly or stony topsoil, often over coloured marls or limestone, were considered best for it. Now it thrives on other sites too, and it is considered, with Savagnin, the variety most able to cope with climate change.

• Demanding and late-harvesting
• Needs lighter, gravelly, warm soils
• Traditionally planted on the warmest sites, often over coloured marls or limestone
• Considered, with Savagnin, the variety most able to cope with climate change

Once vinified, Trousseau develops intense, peppery, spicy flavours and hints of red fruits, and as a varietal red it is rich, tannic and fragrant. Jura's red wines, made from Poulsard, Trousseau and Pinot Noir, range from very pale to moderate in colour, often show more forest floor and animal aromas than fruit, and typically have high acidity with light or moderate but grippy tannins. In recent very hot summers some Trousseau wines have reached 14% ABV. The Jura tradition was to make red blends, but in the past few decades most reds have been made as varietal wines, especially in Arbois. Jura rosés get their colour from a short maceration of the juice on the skins of Poulsard, alone or blended with Pinot Noir and Trousseau. Rosé Crémant du Jura must contain at least 50% Poulsard, Trousseau and Pinot Noir, blended or not, and Trousseau gives these sparkling wines an intense, darker pink colour and a more vinous character. In Macvin du Jura, Poulsard, Trousseau or Pinot Noir bring notes of red fruits.

• Intense, peppery, spicy flavours with hints of red fruits
• Rich, tannic and fragrant as a varietal red
• Some Trousseau wines have reached 14% ABV in recent very hot summers
• Used in still red, rosé, rosé Crémant du Jura and Macvin du Jura

Interest in natural wines is one reason the Jura has moved into the spotlight in recent years, and its little-known grapes, Trousseau among them, are another. Wink Lorch, writing for GuildSomm, recalls that Jura outsiders once found most of the region's reds odd and often hard, whereas today "the eclectic wine world cannot get enough of them". Beyond France, Trousseau is grown in Iberia under different names, and as Bastardo it is one of the permitted Port varieties.

• Natural wine interest has helped bring the Jura into the spotlight
• Grown in Iberia under different names
• Known as Bastardo in Portugal, where it is a permitted Port variety

Primary sources: https://www.vivc.de/index.php?r=passport%2Fview&id=12668 ; https://www.jura-vins.com/medias/nos-vins/3-guide-vins-jura/VDJ-guide2015new-V2-Anglais.pdf Reference sources: https://www.guildsomm.com/public_content/features/articles/b/wink-lorch/posts/jura-wine-styles ; https://www.decanter.com/wine-travel/france/the-decanter-travel-guide-to-jura-france-2361/ ; https://www.jancisrobinson.com/learn/grape-varieties/red/trousseau Last verified 2026-10-27