How to identify grapes by leaves and bunches

If you are a wine geek, or if you want to stand out during a vineyard visit, or if you are just curious to know the secret behind wine sommeliers’ grape identifying abilities, here you have a quick guide to identifying strains commonly found in Argentinian vineyards by its leaves and bunches.

 

White Varieties

Chardonnay

Bunch: small, they reach a mid to high compactness. Cone-shaped, typical of the variety.

Leaf: the adult is medium-sized, with a low density of filaments in and between the nerve endings. It is composed of five lobules that confer a pentagonal shape to the leaf.

Sauvignon Blanc

Bunch: Small size, very compact and uniform which causes deformation in the berries due to the pressure on them. The stalk is really short.

Leaf: Contorted, medium-sized, orbicular. Moderately trilobular or pentalobular, with convex leaf.

Sémillon

Bunch: medium-sized, cone-shaped with spheroidal and medium berry. It presents a golden yellow color.

Leaf: contorted and slightly pentalobular. Convex teeth and the sinus of the leafstalk is U-shaped.

 

Torrontes (Riojano)

Bunch: large, loose, cone-shaped, long. With golden, medium-sized and scented berries.

Leaf: the adult ones are folded and contorted. Medium to large size. Orbicular, pentalobular and the sinus of the leafstalk is V-shaped.

Viognier

Bunch: small, cylindrical and highly compacted. The berry is medium-sized, uniform, spherical and of thick skin. Yellowish-green color.

Leaf: The adult is small and pentagonal, with marked lateral sinuses. The color of the bundle is light green with a cotton-like underside.

Pedro Gimenez

Bunch: Medium to large size. Medium conical shape. Winged.

Leaf: the adult one is extended and a bit contorted. Medium-sized. Orbicular and shortly cuneiform. Slightly thick bubbling. Green. Opaque. Pentalobular, with lateral upper and lower sinuses.

 

Red Varieties

 

Malbec

Bunch: medium-sized, medium conicity, loose to full, medium berry, bluish-black of soft pulp.

Leaf: medium-sized, orbicular, cuneiform, integer and trilobular, of dark green color.

 

Cabernet Sauvignon

Bunch: small, compact and cone-shaped. With small and spherical berries, of bluish-black color.

Leaf: Medium-sized, composed by 3-5 lobules which are slightly exposed. The sinus of the leafstalk is U-shaped.

 

Tempranillo

Bunch: of large size, with marked shoulders, compact, of uniform size and color.

Leaf: the adult leaf has large-sized and is composed by 5-7 lobules which are slightly overlapped, forming a pentagon.

 

Merlot

Bunch: of medium to small size. Medium compactness marked shoulders and short cone shape.

Leaf: the adult leaf is large-sized. It is composed of 5 lobules well-differentiated and slightly overlapped. Pentagonal form.

Bonarda

Bunch: medium-sized. With a tendency to be cylindrical. Really full and compact. Bluish black berry, medium-sized. Spheroid. Soft pulp.

Leaf: the adult is fairly folded, extended, medium to small size. Orbicular with a slight tendency to a short cuneiform.

Syrah

Bunch: cone-shaped, long. With a tendency to cylindrical. Medium-sized, compact and really full.

Leaf: the adults have flat central lobules or asymmetrically folded with their lateral sides pointing up.

Pinot Noir

Bunch: Small-sized with a high degree of compactness. Medium to small-sized berries.

Leaf: the adult is medium-sized and of pentagonal shape. Composed by 3-5 lobules which are slightly overlapped.

 

Cabernet Franc

Bunch: compact and cone-shaped. Short and cylindrical with wings. The berries are small, spherical and bluish-black.

Leaf: pentalobular, slightly open and overlapped.

 

Tannat

Bunch: Medium to large-sized. Compact, cylindrical and winged. With long stalk.

Leaf: the adult leaves are dark green, large and of pentagonal shape. With three to five lobules, the central one is lengthened.