Appears in
Oxford Companion to Wine

By Jancis Robinson

Published 2006

  • About

bourgeon in French, is the name given to a small part of the vine shoot which rests between the leaf stalk or petiole and the shoot stem. In the summer it is covered by green scales, which turn brown in winter. The bud contains three miniature, compressed (primordial) shoots. Normally the best developed of these shoots (from the ‘primary’ bud) bursts at budbreak. Grapevine buds are classified as compound and fruitful; their development is complex.

B.G.C. & R.E.S.