Viognier

VIVC records Viognier as variety number 13106 under the prime name Viognier, with a white (blanc) berry skin. According to VIVC, the country or region of origin of the variety is France; this origin rests on VIVC alone. VIVC records no known parents for Viognier: both parent fields in its passport are empty and its full pedigree field reads 'NO'. VIVC does record that Viognier has offspring, but VIVC-derived lineage data on this site list no children, full siblings or half-siblings among WineWiki's grape articles.

• VIVC variety number 13106; prime name VIOGNIER; berry skin colour blanc (white)
• Country or region of origin according to VIVC: France
• Parents: unknown (VIVC lists neither a parent 1 nor a parent 2)
• Offspring recorded by VIVC: yes; none among WineWiki grape articles in VIVC-derived lineage data

According to Jancis Robinson, the most extraordinary thing about Viognier's story is how very nearly and how very recently it almost shrivelled to extinction. When she wrote Vines, Grapes & Wines in 1985, for publication in 1986, she could identify records of just 32 ha (80 acres) planted in the entire world. In the mid 1980s almost all the officially planted Viognier in the world was in the Rhône Valley, most of it in the Condrieu appellation, where the terraces are so steep and difficult to maintain that only 23 ha (57 acres) remained of an officially allowed total of 200 ha (500 acres). By 2011 Condrieu plantings had risen to 160 ha (400 acres). Jancis Robinson writes that old hands in the village of Condrieu remember a time when Viognier was routinely vinified sweet, and that Condrieu has been experiencing a revival and an injection of real winemaking ambition: old names such as Vernay have been revived, and relative newcomers such as Cuilleron, Gangloff, Niero and Villard have contributed to an overall raising of standards. Her grape page also states that 'DNA analysis has shown a close relationship between Viognier and Syrah'; VIVC names no parents for Viognier.

• 1985: Jancis Robinson could identify records of just 32 ha (80 acres) of Viognier in the entire world
• Mid 1980s: 23 ha (57 acres) remained in Condrieu, of an officially allowed total of 200 ha (500 acres)
• 2011: Condrieu plantings had risen to 160 ha (400 acres)
• Château-Grillet, according to Jancis Robinson, has been taken in hand by the team that runs Bordeaux first growth Château Latour

Condrieu lies on the right bank of the northern Rhône, and Jancis Robinson describes the single-property Château-Grillet, just south of Condrieu, as the only other all-Viognier appellation in the world, set in a potentially magnificent amphitheatre of vineyard. Viognier is now planted widely all over southern France and appears in hundreds of blended whites, often with the Rhône varieties Marsanne and Roussanne, and also with Grenache Blanc, Bourboulenc, Maccabeo and Vermentino, also known as Rolle. In Italy it was pioneered by Ascheri in Piemonte and d'Alessandro of Manzano in Tuscany. Jancis Robinson names Graf Hardegg of the Weinviertel as the leading Viognier exponent in Austria and says Henri Cruchon leads the field in Switzerland. In South Africa, Charles Back of Fairview was the first grower to clear Viognier through the strict quarantine enforced there. She calls Yalumba Australia's Viognier pioneer par excellence, notes that New Zealand has difficulty ripening Viognier to the fullness needed for aromatic expression, and says Chile is producing a clutch of reasonably convincing Viogniers while the variety is well established in Mendoza, notably behind the Santa Julia label. In her view, the place which has had perhaps the greatest success with varietal Viognier outside France is California, where Joseph Phelps of Napa persisted with getting cuttings through the Davis virus treatment program in the mid 1980s. Horton in Virginia has carved out a reputation for its Viognier, and in Washington state McCrea is the leading exponent.

• Northern Rhône: Condrieu, on the right bank, and the single-property Château-Grillet just south of it, the two all-Viognier appellations named by Jancis Robinson
• Southern France: planted widely, often blended with Marsanne, Roussanne, Grenache Blanc, Bourboulenc, Maccabeo and Vermentino
• California: Alban, Calera, Jade Mountain, Kunde and Qupé, whom Jancis Robinson groups as California's Rhône Rangers, have all made Viogniers of note; many Californian examples are 14 or 15% alcohol
• Australia: Yalumba, which Jancis Robinson says now produces Viogniers at all levels of price and quality, some oaked

Jancis Robinson writes that Viognier has to be left on the vine for a very long time before its characteristic heady aroma fully develops. That aroma has variously been described as reminiscent of apricots, May blossom, honeysuckle, ripe peaches and musk, and she places it in the fruit and flower spectrum rather than the mineral or animal one. The best Viognier, in her description, has a heady scent together with real density and extract and, ideally, a dry finish. She has yet to taste an impressive Viognier that was less than 13% alcohol, though she has tasted many that seemed top-heavy and too alcoholic. The wines are generally relatively low in acidity. She also warns that some cheap Viogniers, especially but not exclusively basic Pays d'Oc wines, have strangely cosmetic aromas.

• Aromas have variously been described as reminiscent of apricots, May blossom, honeysuckle, ripe peaches and musk (per jancisrobinson.com)
• Usually full-bodied, with real density and extract in the best examples
• Generally relatively low in acidity
• Alcohol: Jancis Robinson has yet to taste an impressive Viognier under 13%; many Californian examples are 14 or 15%

Jancis Robinson calls Viognier the hedonist's white grape variety but often the vintner's headache, because it has to be left on the vine for a very long time before its characteristic aroma fully develops. She writes that there is much discussion about both the residual sugar level and the ageing potential of Viognier, and that intense Viognier can certainly take sophisticated oak treatments. Viognier also blends well: she writes that d'Alessandro of Manzano in Tuscany, like others, has demonstrated how very well Viognier blends with Chardonnay, especially Chardonnay that is reasonably high in acidity. In red wines, ambitious and experimental winemakers, particularly in Australia and California, have been copying the original recipe for Côte-Rôtie, Syrah with a seasoning of Viognier, and claim that a small proportion, around 5%, helps stabilise the wine's colour and deepen its texture. Jancis Robinson adds that the technique is by no means common in the Rhône today.

• Harvest: the grapes must be left on the vine for a very long time for the aroma to develop fully
• Oak: intense Viognier can take sophisticated oak treatments (Jancis Robinson)
• Blending: in whites, often with Marsanne and Roussanne; it also blends very well with Chardonnay (Jancis Robinson)
• Reds: around 5% Viognier with Syrah, as claimed by winemakers copying the Côte-Rôtie recipe

Jancis Robinson lists as some top examples of Viognier: Cuilleron Les Chaillets, Guigal La Doriane, Georges Vernay Coteau de Vernon, Villard Terrasses du Pilat, Alban Edna Valley and Yalumba The Virgilius. In Condrieu she writes that attention and investment from quality-conscious merchants such as Guigal and Delas has resulted in some superb bottlings, of which Guigal's La Doriane has a particular following. Château-Grillet has now been taken in hand by the team that runs Bordeaux first growth Château Latour, according to Jancis Robinson.

• Cuilleron Les Chaillets (Jancis Robinson's top examples)
• Guigal La Doriane and Georges Vernay Coteau de Vernon (Jancis Robinson's top examples)
• Villard Terrasses du Pilat and Alban Edna Valley (Jancis Robinson's top examples)
• Yalumba The Virgilius (Jancis Robinson's top examples)

Primary sources: https://www.vivc.de/index.php?r=passport%2Fview&id=13106 Reference sources: https://www.jancisrobinson.com/learn/grape-varieties/white/viognier Last verified 2026-09-29