“In viticulture, a clone is a population of vines derived by vegetative propagation from a single vine, called a mother vine,” he says. “All vines grown from cuttings or buds of this vine are genetically identical. Future generations will remain identical unless a spontaneous mutation occurs, creating a bud with an altered genetic makeup.”
In addition to founding Caldwell Vineyard in the Coombsville appellation, which cultivates 10 clones of Cabernet Sauvignon, among other wines, Caldwell ran a certified California nursery from which he could legally sell vine cuttings. He was also the first American importer of French clones licensed by France’s regulatory agency, Etablissement National Technique pour l’Amélioration de la Viticulture (ENTAV).
Clonal selection began in Germany in 1926 with the goal of finding the best possible material to plant. The prevailing wisdom is for growers to plant a variety of clones and their own clonal selections to achieve complexity without obscuring terroir.
Currently, the practice occurs in wine regions worldwide. For Cabernet Sauvignon, it’s less of a focus than with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, especially in the New World. But Cabernet clones still matter. “Clones are real, but they are more a bookkeeping method of keeping track of what has less disease,” says M. Andrew Walker, University of California, Davis, department of Viticulture and Enology Professor Emeritus, and a grape breeder in the department for 30 years who recently retired. “Clones are not discernible from each other genetically. We can’t determine genetic distinctions [between clones], only organoleptic.”
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