Raise A Glass To Vintage Field Trip…
26 July 2007
The rocky vineyards influence the character of the grape.
The vineyards follow the geology as they generally grow in the softer rocks, which lie between the rocky ridges.
”Dr Roger Suthren, Senior Lecturer in Geology and Earth Sciences
A group of University of Derby Geology students must be the toast of their peers as they take part in an exciting field trip to the Pyrenees mountain range – involving vineyards!
Five students are carrying out fieldwork for their Independent Studies in the Languedoc Roussillon area of Southern France where the geological features in the foothills of the Pyrenees provide the perfect setting for vineyards to flourish.
The Pyrenees mountain range was formed by a collision millions of years ago between the Iberian Peninsula and France. Its effects in terms of folding, faulting and the thrusting up of one part of the Earth’s crust over another were dramatic.
The students are working towards the eastern end of the Pyrenees, near the Mediterranean coast.
The region is famous for red and rosé wines, particularly from the Corbières and the St Chinian region. The students are not only busy gathering data about the geological diversity of the region, but they are also encouraged to sample the wine.
One of the course’s leaders, Dr Roger Suthren, has led tours of this complex geological region, gaining knowledge both of the geology and the extensive wine growing over a period of 25 years.
The Languedoc is the largest wine producing region in the world and Roger explains that its varied geology contributes to a great range of ‘terroirs’ – the totality of the elements of a vineyard habitat – for vine growing.
Dr Suthren, a Senior Lecturer in Geology, said: “While the students’ main task is to produce a map and report on the geology of the area, the geology directly controls the quality of the wine grapes grown here. Sampling the produce from the vineyards is all part of the learning process to fully appreciate the whole environment.”
Four students are currently out in France currently producing geological maps of individual areas. They will be joined by a fifth, James Wilkinson, next week.
James, 20, from Glenfield, in Leicester, will take part in a fossil project to help determine the precise ages of the rocks formed from sea creatures deposited in the warm shallow seas that covered the area some 50 million years ago. His study will involve some chemical analysis of the rocks.
James said: “I am very much looking forward to the variety of challenges that I will be presented with when carrying out such a considerable project abroad. I am not sure when I will have time for any of this promised wine drinking!”
The north of the region is dominated by the Montagne Noire, the ‘Black Mountain’, created during the Variscan Orogeny – the same mountain-building event which folded and uplifted the rocks of the Peak District. Elsewhere in the mountain range there is rich variety, with deep gorges through limestone ridges, crowned by medieval fortresses, featuring thermal springs and rivers which flow into the Mediterranean.
There are vineyards everywhere on the southern slopes of the mountain range. Some of the best Minervois and St Chinian vines grow on almost solid rock.
Dr Suthren said: “The vineyards follow the geology as they generally grow in the softer rocks, which lie between the rocky ridges.
“The vines thrive in poor soils, the rock formations provide excellent drainage, and being on a slope optimises the amount of sun that the plants absorb, which also plays a role.
“It is a wonderful location for field trips. The area has it all – almost a geologist’s paradise. Aside from the vineyards it has superbly displayed geological structures, recent volcanoes, limestone caves, mines, quarries, museums, and abundant evidence of man’s use of geological resources over more than 2000 years – and all this in a glorious Mediterranean climate!”
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For more information about this news release, contact Simon Butt, Press and PR Officer, on 01332 591891 or 07748 920023, or email: s.butt@derby.ac.uk.
This press release was written by Deputy Head of Press and PR Simon Redfern on 01332 591942.
