Important French grape breeding operation in Saint-Vallier on the Drôme in the Rhône Valley, founded by Bertille Seyve (1864-1939) and his father-in-law Victor Villard. Later, the sons Bertille Seyve Jr. (1895-1959) and Joannes Seyve (1900-1966) were also involved in the operation. Here, over a hundred French new varieties were developed from the end of the 19th century through crossbreeding between American vines and hybrids with European vines.
These were mostly French hybrids of the so-called second generation, as many used hybrids from the French breeder Albert Seibel (1844-1936) as crossing partners. The grape varieties were named starting with the business name or the name of the breeder and a running number (for example, Bertille Seyve, Joannes Seyve, Seyve, Seyval, Seyve-Villard, or Villard). Some of them later received a catchy name.
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Dr. Edgar Müller
Dozent, Önologe und Weinbauberater, Bad Kreuznach