Grape Variety #29: Mourvedre

In this video, I talk about the history, viticulture and wine qualities of this ancient grape. I also discuss recent research in Spain on clonal variation and drought tolerance.

[@francismarcelvos5831]

I found a company in the Netherlands that sells mature Mourvedre grapevines. I purchased one of them and intend to plant it in the hottest part of my garden, next to a Yucca and my three young French grapevines. I thank you for your findings as it tells me how to treat it. My garden has no problem with drought.

[@grantcramer]

Your welcome!

[@francismarcelvos5831]

Mourvedre seems to be a grape variety that I might be suitable for Southern Nevada and any semi dessert type. I lived in Israel for 22 years in the Jerusalem hills. I harvested the last Sauvignon type. We had in Israel a late ripening red type that was similar but with enormous berries. Once that variety was ripe in early November, than we wouldn't see any grapes till July. I have an Israeli wine made from a mix of Carignan and Grenache grapes. Israelis prefer sweet dessert wines which they use in religious ceremonies, called 'Kidush', sanctification. You see more and more white wines now, but Kidush wines are invariably red and rather sweet. Some Israelis never tasted a white wine. I myself made white wine of Sauvignon grapes in the hills of Motza and Beit Zayit. These grew on south facing hills between those two villages. There is a river there, Sorek, that became famous because of Samson in the Bible. Samson was a Naziree, who was forbidden to drink wine and cut his hair. Archeologists found in that Sorek valley the biggest Stoneage town from before Biblical times. From the time of David they found a temple resembling the temple in Jerusalem. God was depicted as a mounted God of war on a horse, called 'Yahweh Tsva'ot, the Lord of hosts. The Ark of the convenant was temporarily parked in that temple after it was returned from the Philistines, until David brought it up to Jerusalem, some ten miles uphill. In the resurrection story, Yeshua walked up with His disciples to Emmaus=Motza and broke bread and drank wine. Yeshua did a blessing over the wine in such a way, that his disciples recognized that this was the resurrected Yeshua. Jewish men wore a prayershawl over their heads in those days, hiding the face. This is the reason why they didn't recorgnize Yeshua. In 1880, in Motza, the first winery was established by Jews and the first brick factory of the Middle East. Another interesting thing is that the place was called after a big spring. Motza means spring, and this spring still gives water to Jerusalem. I harvested the last Sauvignon grapes In 1985 from that first batch of grapevines that were planted in 1880. That Mourvedre may come from the Phenicians, can be considered true, as still today they grow Mourvedre and Carignan types of grapes especially in Zichron Ya'akov on the coast of Northern Israel. What other grapes are used in Israeli wine? Native Israeli Varieties: These include Biblical era white varieties like Marawi (a.k.a. Hamdani), Jandali, and Dabouki, red grapes like Baladi Asmar and Bittuni, and crosses like Argaman (a cross between Carignan and the Portuguese grape Souzao). These types may also be suitable for Southern Nevada. To make Kosher wine, there are specific requirement how winegrapes should be grown. In Biblical times they would drink dry wine and sweetened wine with honey. The first recorded miracle of Yeshua (Jesus) was making wine of water during a wedding. The master of ceremonies of that wedding praised the wine for its quality. Israeli dessert wines are used all the world over, especially by Jews and for churches celebrating the death of Yeshua in the ceremony of the Last Supper. The Bible records that the first mention of wine is of Noach, after the flood, became drunk and Kanaan, his grandson injured Noach so that he lost his capacity to have more offspring. Grapevines may originate from Ararat, Turkey according to the Bible. I my garden in Bet Zayit I had a number of wild white grapes. Extremely sweet and small. My best wine I made of these wild grapes. My mother loved this wine. When we moved to another house, I made wine from Sauvignon grapes that I harvested in the old vineyards of Motza. Mourvedre may be the type of winegrape that was used for the last supper. Just before Yeshua died, soldiers gave him dry wine on a sponge on a stick. It may have been Mourvedre wine. This fact may make this grape variety to become a success for winegrowers. Often Kidush wine is mostly opaque. Brownish black. I hope this information may help you make Nevada wines profitable. I am an amateur Bible cultural historian and archeologist and studied Archeology at the Hebrew University for two years and made a reconstruction of the Last Supper.

[@grantcramer]

Thank you for this interesting information.