Origin: Solaris is a fungus-resistant white wine variety newly bred in 1975. Solaris was crossed at the Staatlichen Weinbauinstitut Freiburg by Norbert Becker.

Interbreeding: Merzling × Gm 6493 (Zarya Severa × Muscat Ottonel)

Characteristics: Shoot tip of Solaris has white woolly hairs. The leaves are large, dense, three-lobed and dark green. The variety flowers very early, but is resistant to flowering. The bud burst, blossom and onset of ripening are very early compared to standard varieties. The frost resistance is very good. The demands on the vineyard are relatively low, as the variety already has a must weight of 100 degrees Oechsle at the beginning of September. Solaris grows less upright, which makes lifting more difficult. Due to the early ripeness, the grapes are endangered by wasp and fruit fly infestation.

Grape: The Solaris grapes are medium sized, hardly shouldered and medium dense. Berries are small to medium-sized, yellow-green in colour and short oval.

Wine: The wines are fruity, strong, fragrant and harmonious and are used for wine and dessert wine production. Skin contact and cool fermentation can produce wines with pronounced fruitiness. The sec wines of this variety show similarities in taste to Chardonnay, while the residually sweet wines have more the character of Sauvignon Blanc.

Cultivation: Due to its early ripeness, Solaris produces fully ripe grapes even on less good vineyard sites.