Éclair-Vermorel, a one-man, copper- tanked, backpack Bordeaux sprayer— among the most important wine inventions of all time. The institute’s headquarters and labs
are located within Vermorel’s original research station in Villefranche-sur- Saône. Around 4 miles (6km) southwest of there, the institute’s 20ha (50 acres) of experimental vineyards are processed at Vermorel’s former Domaine du Château de l’Éclair. His ghost continues to smile on the institute’s ongoing work. Bertrand Chatelet—director of SICAREX and the Beaujolais-Bourgogne-Jura-Savoie division of the Institut Français de la Vigne et du Vin—and his colleague of 25 years, Valérie Lempereur, both enologists, are leading the program specifically devoted to climate-change mitigation. The institute has rightly taken a multipronged approach. In the first instance, its research includes the planting and studying of a wide range of potential grape varieties, preselected for attributes Beaujolais might need in the future. The primary candidates include 120 Gamay clones not yet in wide use or from other regions (including Gamay Gris); familiar grapes used elsewhere, like Syrah, Merlot, Carignan, Nielluccio (Corsica’s version of Sangiovese); and promising crosses like Gamaret, Gaminot, Divico, Granita, Picarlat, Beaugaray, and Marselan. Others include old, traditional reds like Noir Fleurien, Epinou, Dousset, and Mondeuse Grise, plus resistant varieties such as Coliris, Artaban, Vidoc, and Chambourcin. A similar program is focused on a wide range of white grape solutions for Chardonnay. Beyond testing and analysis of
grape selection, they are also focused on adaptive strategies for viticulture, soil management techniques for carbon and water retention, and potential consumer perceptions of these solutions.
Above: Bertrand Chatelet, director of SICAREX, working with Valérie Lempereur on climate change. Below: Vines from one of SICAREX’s two most promising Gamay clones, 1227, identified in 2015.
Clearly, they have a lot on what is becoming an increasingly larger, more complex plate—though a 3D jigsaw puzzle with constantly changing images on each piece seems a more apt metaphor. Rather than imposing change from the top down, the institute’s long-term strategy on mitigation has been holistic, adaptive, and highly collaborative. Chatelet and Lempereur strongly believe that “Beaujolais can remain within the Gamay family via clones and crosses.” Chatelet thinks “they can keep growing Gamay for 20, 30… 50 years through mitigations, given both Beaujolais and Gamay have such diverse possibilities,” though he admits to having been surprised and challenged by the rapid rate of climate change experienced so far. Creating a new variety from scratch is neither a quick nor easy process. It can take anywhere from 20 to 25 years or more, including up to five years just to choose two parents, then hand-pollinate and plant newly created seeds (each grape containing seeds with different genetic profiles and cloning potential). After that comes a longer process of bulking up enough vines to produce small-batch wines to test. Ten years of research follows to determine its qualities and possible usage. Isolating and identifying new clones require similar lead times to determine disease resistance, acidity, alcohol, and general characteristics.
So far, SICAREX has created four promising and significant new grape varieties, some having taken 40 years all the way through from inception, to commercial production.
The plan
The plan to mitigate climate change is for vine growers to determine the ultimate outcome of the institute’s experimental processes. SICAREX’s aim has been to create a choice of varieties and viticultural solutions, suggesting the best choices and then turning it over to the growers to decide what will work best for them. Adaptive regulations laid out in 2018 have also set the stage for new possibilities; for example, allowing 5% of another variety beyond Gamay planted within plots, and 10% blended within cuvées. And so, after a ten-year trial, the growers can decide what they like growing and what they want their wines to smell, taste, and feel like before locking in changes or embarking on new possibilities. Given all the unknowns and variabilities, the program is likely to remain open and ongoing for whatever the future holds.
Gamay clones and crosses SICAREX’s two most promising Gamay clones are 1227 (identified in 2015) and 1170 (identified in 2011). Their own
THE WORLD OF FINE WINE | ISSUE 87 | 2025 | 25
Photography (left) by Etienne Ramousse for Inter Beaujolais; (right) by Paul White
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