Pinot noir précoce or, as it is called in parts of Germany, Frühburgunder is a dark, blue-black, -skinned, variety of grape used for wine, and is a form or mutation of Pinot noir which differs essentially by ripening earlier than normal (thus the use of the descriptive nomination 'précoce'). Whilst sometimes treated as a separate grape variety by ampelographers, there are nevertheless those who consider it is simply an early ripening form of Pinot Noir, and in some cases Pinot noir précoce wines may therefore be found straightforwardly labelled "Pinot noir".