Delaware grape
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Delaware grape is a cultivar derived from the grape species Vitis Labrusca or 'Fox Grape' which is used for the table and wine production. [1]
The skin of the Delaware grape when ripened is pale red almost pinkish in colour that has a tender skin and juicy sweet flesh. [2] It has small fruit clusters with small berries that do not have the pronounced 'foxiness' of other Labrusca grapes. It is a slip-skin variety, meaning that the skin is easily separated from the fruit. The grapes are used to make wines including dry, sweet, icewine but is famed for spicy sparkling wines that do not have much of the objectionable foxiness character that other labrusca grapes attribute to their wines.[3] The wine is light pink to white in colour.
It is a commercially viable grape vine which is grown in the North East and Mid West of America and is vigorous when grafted onto a phylloxera resistant root stock. The Delaware grape is susceptible to downy mildew and ripens earlier than Concord [4]
[edit] History
Delaware grape was discovered in Delaware State in Ohio in 1849. Although it is said to be an American variety it's parentage is unknown and is thought to have a slight Vitis Vinifera mix explaining the susceptibility to fungal diseases and the requirement for grafting onto phylloxera resistant rootstock for best growth. [5]
