Wine Arcana

Grape

Vidal Blanc

Also known as Vidal

Vidal Blanc is a white hybrid grape particularly associated with Canadian icewine, while also making dry and sweeter wines in the United States. Its usefulness for a winter harvest depends on the berries remaining sound long after normal picking time.

Staying on the vine

Purdue's cultivar guide describes thick-skinned berries on large, relatively loose bunches and identifies that fruit durability as an advantage for icewine. It also cautions that the vine needs a sufficiently long growing season and a suitable winter climate. Fruit that survives late hanging and wood that survives severe cold are separate agricultural questions.

The same guide notes later budbreak, which can reduce exposure to some spring freezes. Crop size still needs attention: a productive vine may require thinning to ripen its fruit adequately.

Canada and the Midwest

Inniskillin's Ontario Vidal Icewine provides a documented Canadian example. The winery describes concentrated tropical and stone-fruit aromas with pronounced acidity. In such a sweet wine, acidity helps prevent the sugar from dominating the whole impression.

Missouri offers a broader contrast. The state's wine organization documents Vidal as dry or semi-dry varietal wine, in blends, and in sweet sparkling styles. Apple and pear-like impressions can be more prominent in these less concentrated expressions.

The variety name consequently leaves a major question unanswered: whether the fruit was picked for an ordinary table wine or held for a concentrated sweet style. Harvest method and residual sugar are essential companions to the grape name.

Sources