Vitis Vinifera essays

Vitis Vinifera essays Vitis vinifera, better known as grapevine or wine grapes, is native to Asia Minor where wild grapes still grow. V. Vinifera is commonly cultured for fruit, eaten fresh or processed into wine, raisins, or juice. Over 8,000 cultivars are listed, most of them having been selected for a specific region and purpose. Cultures are mainly limited to the Northern Hemisphere. In United States this grape is grown in California and Arizona, and will not tolerate the cold winters and humid summers of eastern United States. Requirements are for long, warm to hot dry summers and mild winters. Plant damage occurs at -18C; frost kills young shoots. Daily mean temperature should be at least 18C. This species will not endure the high temperatures coupled with high humidity of tropics. Thus grapes are unsuitable to humid, steamy, hot tropics, as they need a cold period for resting and a dry sunshine climate for ripening fruit. However Vitis vinifera has been identified in some tropic conditions includ ing Sri Lanka, Trinidad Forms of V. Vinifera date as far back as 4000 B.C. where forms of the wild were already being selected and in cultivation in the Middle East. Ancient Egyptian records from 2500 B.C. mention the use of grapes for wine making. The Old Testament references to wine confirm this early origin and the significance of the wine industry in the Middle East. The familiarity of grape vines can be seen in both physical and metaphorical references to the 'vine'. The Greeks had an active wine trade and planted grapes in their colonies throughout the Mediterranean region. The Romans brought grape growing into the valleys of the Germany and France. The need for Wine in the Christian mass continued this wine-growing tradition after the fall of the Roman Empire, monastic orders preserving and developing many of the highly regarded wine-producing areas. ...