Béquignol noir

Béquignol noir (also known as Red Chenin) is a red French wine grape variety that originated in Southwest France but is now more widely grown in the Mendoza wine region of Argentina where it is often used to add color to blends. The grape is often confused with several other red wine varieties such as Cabernet Franc, Durif, Fer and Prunelard with Béquignol noir sharing several synonyms with these grapes. However DNA profiling has shown Béquignol noir to be distinct from those grape varieties. Further research in 2011 showed that Béquignol noir may have a parent-offspring relationship with the Savagnin grape.

History

Ampelographers believe that the name Béquignol comes from the Gascon dialect terms béc and inhol which together means literally "little beak" and could be a reference to the size of the berries. The first written record of Béquignol noir comes from the journals of mayor of Libourne Antoine Feuilhade who wrote about the grape being cultivated in the Bordeaux wine region between 1763 and 1777.