Young Vine

One of my fond memories is of sitting on the terrace of my sister in law's parents, up in the mountain region of Abruzzo. In the summer the vines hung with very dark, highly scented grapes which they called Uva Fragola. A couple of years ago I asked the Italian girl who is managing the new local vineyard if she could tell me what the variety was in English. Not only did she tell me, she also acquired a plant for me last year.

This is a Concorde or Fox Grapevine, Vitis Labrusca which originates in North America. The grapes we normally eat and associate with wine production are subtly different and originate in the Mediterranean, Vitus Vinifera. The main difference is that these have much smaller fruits and they have a very intense and particular flavour. The fruit can be turned into wine but legally it can't be called such as it doesn't come from officially recognised vines.

I planted this last spring and it gave me a total of six grapes. That was good enough for it's first year. As the new year's leaves start to unfold, next to every primary leaf the flowering buds are starting to form. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I have been warned that the vines aren't normally happy on calcareous soil but by it's growth last year, this one seems to like it. They are, however, renowned for providing fruit at much lower temperatures than Vinifera vines.

There is also a bonus Hoverfly, struggling to fly in the lack of heat!