Clones

Normally offspring, be it grapevines or humans, have a natural variation in their genetic make up. For example a child is a mix of both its parents, but although siblings share the same parents they are genetically different (unless they are identical twins). Occasionally a child will come along that is so outstanding it could be Einstein! Wouldn't it be great to have a large number of Einsteins in the population? By cloning humans this could be achieved but we know it is illegal. However with grapes we can clone the best examples. Exceptional grapes may be very flavoursome, particularly good at growing in wet or dry conditions or possess other traits worth preserving. To reproduce these traits a cutting is taken from the vine and grown. This is called cloning and each clone will have an exact genetic match to the plant that the cutting was taken. Unlike human reproduction where the offspring are usually genetically different cloning ensures that each vine is genetically identical

In grape growing, most vineyards are planted with clones. The best vines are cloned (copied) and grown again and again. For example, the Pinot Noir grape variety has a number of different clones. Some are suitable for making sparkling wines, others are best for still red wine or suit different types of soils. When planting vineyards it is just as important to decide on the type of clone used as it is on the grape variety.