The Petit Courbu Grape

(Synonyms: Courbis, Corbu Petit, Petit Courbu Blanc, Vieux Pacherenc, Xuri Zerratu)

Background

Petit Courbu is a white-wine grape originating in the Gascony region of France, more particularly in the Madiran area. Do not confuse this grape with “Courbu Blanc” or “Courbu Rouge”, which are quite unrelated types (though Courbu Blanc wines are said to be rather similar to those from Petit Courbu).

Petit Courbu contributes in some part, usually small, to white blends in several appellations: Jurançon, Béarn, and Irouléguy; but it is most prominent in the wines of the “Pacherenc Du Vic Bilh” appellation. There, it is one of a small set of grape types typically blended in the region to yield wines made in styles mostly ranging from off-dry to outright sweet, but including some dry, table-wine types as well. It is apparently impossible to locate a monovarietal bottling of Courbu (such a bottling might not even be legal under France’s, um distinctive wine laws).

In the Madiran, a single winemaker, Alain Brumont, has been the driving force in bringing the region’s wines to quality and at least some celebrity; Brumont makes wine under several labels: Chateau Montus (the flagship domaine), Chateau Bouscassé, Torus, and a few others. Most or all of the mainly Courbu bottlings come from one or another of his domaines.

Petit Courbu wines are said to exhibit a citrus-y quality with overtones of honey and some minerality. The nose is said to be quite aromatic. It is a full-bodied wine, but of modest acidity and alcohol levels, well and strongly flavored.

Factoid: Petit Courbu is said by some sources to be the same as the Basque grape Hondarrabi Zurri (aka Ondarrabi Zuri and Xuri Zerratia), one of the grapes used to make the Basque Txakolina wines.

Some Descriptions of Petit Courbu Wines

Wikipedia
“Petit Courbu is a white wine grape from Gascony with a long history in the region. It adds body and contributes aromas of citrus and honey to the wines. It is found in Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh AOC and other appellations of the region.”
Wine Searcher
“Petit Courbu, whose name means ‘little curved one’, is also known simply as Corbu. Because it is a white (blanc) grape, it is sometimes confused with Corbu Blanc, a variety which is only very subtly different. French ampelographer (grapevine scientist) Pierre Galet recognizes the two varieties as distinct due to the difference between their leaves (Courbu Blanc’s are slightly darker in the spring). Both varieties seem to have originated in Gascony (a vaguely defined south-western province of pre-revolutionary France) and both contribute a subtle honeyed, citrus aroma to the area's white wines. Both Petit Courbu and Courbu Blanc are used in the sweet and dry wines of Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh and Jurancon and the dry whites of Irouleguy. Petit Courbu can additionally be used in the whites of Saint-Mont (formerly Cotes de Saint-Mont), where Courbu Blanc is not permitted.”
Wine Making Talk
“Petit Courbu grapes possess lightly colored skin and have a medium body and aromas of citrus and honey. The Petit Courbu grape is also known by several other names including Courbu and Courbu Petit.”
Fringe Wine
“It is typically used as a blending grape in SW France along with Gros Manseng, Petit Manseng and Arrufiac, where it is prized for the body, perfume and richness that it can contribute to a blend.”
Mercier Grapevines
“On its own, Petit Courbu produces fine, pale golden-yellow wines with an exuberant bouquet, powerful body and good aging potential.”
Lionel Osmin & Cie.
“It is a vine which complements Mansengs as it tends to be less acidic and less alcoholic than the latter. Courbu is rarely vinified on its own but can give very nice wines if it is. Blended, it brings refinement and mineral notes to Mansengs and especially to Petit Manseng.”

Some Petit Courbus to Try

We have nothing against blended wines, which are often the best and highest use of certain varietals; but in these lists we are trying to present representative specimens of the grape in question, so our focus is on monovarietal bottlings, or at least those dominated by the grape. With Petit Courbu (and several other of the usual blend ingredients in Gascony), it is often hard to find monovarietal samples; indeed, it is often hard to even identify the actual makeup of many of the bottlings. In the end, we could not find a monovarietal Courbu; but we came close on the one listed below—and even that one is now scarce in the U.S. (and if you see a bottle, check the vintage year—the bottle should be not over 8 years old, and not over 5 years is safer).

Château Bouscassé “Les Jardins Philosophiques”
(The maker’s notes refer to “a cuvée made with almost 100% Petit Courbu”; it also includes some Petit Manseng, another Gascony grape scarce in the U.S. Some vintages are labelled “Pacherenc du Vic Bilh Sec”, others are not; one suspects that the ones not so labelled have a higher Petit Courbu percentage than the 80% French law—always ridiculous, like all national wine laws—allows in a Pacherenc.)

• This wine’s Wine Searcher “Reviews” page.
CellarTracker has two separate listings for this wine:
• This wine’s CellarTracker review pages.
• This wine’s CellarTracker review pages.
• Retail offers of this wine listed by Wine Searcher.
• Retail offers of this wine listed by 1000 Corks.

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This page was last modified on Saturday, 30 October 2021, at 11:26 pm Pacific Time.

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