Merlot blanc

[1] The grape is distinct from Merlot gris which is a pink-skinned color mutation of the red wine grape Merlot and is sometimes used in vin gris and rosé wines.

Plantings of Merlot blanc were first discovered in 1891 but cuttings of the vine have not been widely propagated and the variety is very rare.

However, DNA analysis conducted by the University of California-Davis and noted ampelographers such as Carole Meredith confirmed that Merlot blanc was distinct from Merlot (itself the result of a crossing of the Bordeaux grape Cabernet Franc and the Brittany/Charente grape Magdeleine Noire des Charentes) but rather was an offspring of Merlot.

Merlot blanc destined for AOC wine production are limited to harvest yields no greater than 55 hl/ha (approximately 3.7 tons/acre with the finished wines needing to attain a minimum alcohol level of at least 11%.

[3] Other Bordeaux AOCs that permit the usage of Merlot blanc in their designated white wines include Bordeaux-Haut-Benauge (maximum harvest yield of 50 hl/ha), Côtes de Bourg (but not the Côtes de Blaye) and Entre-Deux-Mers (which like the Côtes de Bourg limits harvest yield to 60 hl/ha).