Seibel grapes

Seibel grapes are a group of wine grape varieties which originated with the work of Albert Seibel crossing European grape with American grape species to increase disease resistance. They were planted widely in France during the 1950s but have seen decline in recent years because French wine law proscribes hybrid grapes in appellation wine. The grapes are still commonly used as blending grapes in table wine and mass commercial wines. New Zealand, England, and Canada also have plantings of Seibel grapes.

Of great importance is the fact that almost all of Albert Seibel’s hybrid grapes were descended from only four parent grapes: two European (Vitis Vinifera) grapes: Aramon and Alicante Bouchet … one wild American grape: Jaeger 70 (V. Rupestris x V.Lincicumii)… and one rootstock, AxR1, which was created by crossing Aramon with a wild American Vitis Rupestris.

Although Seibel bred tens of thousands of grapes, he did so almost entirely by continually crossing and re-crossing his original varieties, all of which were descended from the original four vines, so the basic gene pool of his collection remained largely unchanged.

Almost all later grapevine hybridizers, such as Bertille Seyve and his father-in-law Victor Villard, would simply breed one or two of Albert Seibel’s grapes together and name their creations after themselves, e.g., Seyve-Villard 5276 (“Seyval Blanc”).

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