Grape Vine Plants

Winemaking Grapes

Organic sugar compounds found within the grapes ferments and preserves the grape juice into wine. The sugars are converted into ethyl alcohol that acts a preservative and when bottled in an atmosphere without oxygen, the resulting wine can keep for centuries. It is not surprising that European grapes (called Vitis vinifera) were developed commercially, and are now grown as separate cultivars.

Grapes were selected over the centuries based on which variety produced the finest flavored wines with the most desirable aromas and tastes. This not only depended on the weather and the grape vine, but also by the influence of the earth that the vines would grow in. These selections evolved from Europe and were hybridized with wild grape vines from America by Cornell University researchers and New York Agricultural College at Ithaca and Geneva, New York. The scientists used these hybrids to create new cultivars with thinner skins that were seedless and perfect for eating and fine wine production. America’s wild species of grapes that were found growing in the Southern U.S., were also more resistant to diseases because of the thicker skin and the bigger seeds. Muscadine grape and scuppernong grape vines are typically planted for grocery store sales and for pick-your-own vineyard operations.

Read More...

Less...