Clinton
Clinton is a red hybrid grape variety that arose naturally from North American wild vines and is known above all for its strong resistance to phylloxera and mildews. The name also refers to the wine made from it, which is light in alcohol, dark red in colour, and often shows fruity notes reminiscent of raspberry or strawberry.
History
Clinton comes from North America. It is a natural cross between two native vine species, Vitis riparia and Vitis labrusca, which arose without direct human intervention. The first seedling of this combination was found in New York State in 1835, and the discovery is usually credited to Hugh White, who located the original plant.
Its arrival in Europe is tied to the phylloxera crisis, the louse that devastated European vineyards from the second half of the nineteenth century. American vines tolerated the pest better than European ones, so they were used as rootstocks or as sources of resistant varieties. Clinton was then planted in several European countries, among them northern Italy, Switzerland and Austria, and in parts of France, especially on the southern slopes of the Massif Central, in Lozère, the Gard, the north of Hérault and the Aveyron, and more broadly in the Cévennes region.
Over time, the spread of other varieties and changes in wine legislation greatly reduced its presence. According to the sources consulted, the commercial sale of Clinton wine is currently prohibited in France. Outside Europe, the variety is also grown in Brazil.
Culture
In the Cévennes and the southern Massif Central, Clinton wine was part of everyday life for generations. It was a low-alcohol wine, often below 10 degrees, that had to be drunk very young because it kept poorly. Its taste was frequently bitter and slightly sparkling, and for that reason people routinely added sugar or lemonade, which softened its acidity and made it more pleasant. This habit made it a simple table drink, tied to daily meals rather than to special occasions.
One of its most characteristic uses was the chabrot, a popular custom in which a small amount of wine was poured into the soup plate and the broth was finished with its flavour. It was a domestic gesture, without ceremony. As the decades passed, Clinton production practically disappeared from ordinary circulation.
In recent years a group of growers, who call themselves néo-cévenois, or neo-Cévenols, has sought to revive the cultivation of the vine. Their work leans partly toward new uses, such as fruit juices, rather than toward traditional wine. In other countries the grape appears in products with their own identity: in Italy, for instance, it is used to rub the rind of a Veneto cheese, Ubriaco al Fragola Clinto, made with must of Fragola and Clinton. For the enthusiast, the variety shows how an American grape moved from being an agricultural solution to a mark of local identity.