Can you help me ID these?

[Tater]

This is my first post here, my name is Abby and my parents have decided they want to try making wine! Unfortunately, they don't know how to use the computer, so you'll probably see me from time to time asking their questions.

I was hoping someone could help me ID our grapes, we bought them from a greenhouse a few years ago. I took some pictures but you'll have to understand that we live in MN and at this point in the year, the vine isn't looking too happy.

Here's one leaf

and some more, somewhere in my head I thought I'd use my hand for size comparison, but I'm pretty sure I wasn't holding my hand at the same level as the leaves, so they're a little bigger than they look in the picture.

and here's the grapes

thanks in advance!
-Abby

 

[St Allie]

Welcome to the forum Abby..

I have no idea what they are..hopefully one of our vineyard growers will be in to give you a hand soon.

Any other information?.. are they a sweet grape? are they fully ripe now?.. does the whole bunch of grapes ripen at once or one grape at a time?

Allie

 

[Tater]

the grapes are edible but not sweet, I think the entire bunch ripens at the same time, maybe with a few green ones in there. They've been fully ripe for probably five or six weeks. thanks for the help!

 

[MN-winer]

Abby - you may want to try the University of Minnesota Extension. They can be very helpful identifying plants. Here is their website. http://www.extension.umn.edu/

They look like grapes I grew a long time ago. Unfortunately the wine wasn't very good, but technology is better in wine making now and I think if I used them now, I know enough to make a decent wine. Good luck.

Oh - also since I have two girls I have to tell you this - put on your shoes!!!!

 

[St Allie]

Oh - also since I have two girls I have to tell you this - put on your shoes!!!!

hehehhehe!

Allie

 

[Tom]

Abby - you may want to try the University of Minnesota Extension. They can be very helpful identifying plants. Here is their website. http://www.extension.umn.edu/

They look like grapes I grew a long time ago. Unfortunately the wine wasn't very good, but technology is better in wine making now and I think if I used them now, I know enough to make a decent wine. Good luck.

Oh - also since I have two girls I have to tell you this - put on your shoes!!!!

And do you want to elaborate ??

 

[TB1]

I am by no means a expert on grapes. But judging purely from the size my guess would be Concord. If you mash some down in a pan and cook them a bit then strain them Does the juice taste like Welshes? you may have to sweeten them a bit for this.

 

[myakkagldwngr]

First of all, welcome from one newbee to another. Second, you are passing up a wonderful chance, sit your parents down at the computer and teach them how to use it.
I'm not sure how old you are, but it will be good pay backs for the driving lessons they'll either give you or have given you!!

 

[Tater]

What? you guys don't think my socks are cute enough to be on the internet?

It's not that my parent's don't know how to use the internet, so much, but moreso that they can't type! I'll come in here to find my dad typing with his two pointer fingers and spelling everything wrong. Maybe they would do better with chatspeak?

For the most part, the grapes seem to be the size of large-ish blueberries, nowhere near what I'm used to buying in the store. Here's a picture of three of the grapes next to my thumb and a quarter, if someone told me that they were blueberries I wouldn't think twice...

 

[Racer]

I am by no means a expert on grapes. But judging purely from the size my guess would be Concord. If you mash some down in a pan and cook them a bit then strain them Does the juice taste like Welshes? you may have to sweeten them a bit for this.

I'm with TB1 they look like concord to me too. Can you folks check with the greenhouse where they were purchased?

 

[Skyhawk]

By the small, sparse berries, it really looks like the original fox grape that grows wild all over the place here. Then again concord is a cultivar of fox grape, our native far northern grape vine.

 

[Tater]

Unfortunately, I think the greenhouse is closed now, and we bought the vine over four years ago.

I thought I posted a few hours ago, I don't know why it didn't show up, but I took another picture for size reference. Here's three grapes next to my thumb and a quarter. They're really almost identical to blueberries, as far as size and color.

 

[MN-winer]

And do you want to elaborate ??

I hope I can elaborate some. I am pretty sure after reading the replies my grapes were wild grapes. they were sour and tasted like concord. I was living with my brother at the time and we found them growing on our fence in the house we purchased. We picked them and bottled about 3 gallons of wine. It was very harsh tasting - heavy tannins I guess. I can't recall the chemicals used, I do know we added bananas for body. We were not sophisticated and basically fermented, bottled and drank it quickly, so its possible it would have gotten better over time, but we were in our twenties and had no patience.

 

[Tom]

Actually I meant to elaborate "Oh - also since I have two girls I have to tell you this - put on your shoes!!!!"
I thought it odd what you said. LOL

 

[DageonYar]

Likely because she's wandering around the garden in pink socks lol

 

[MN-winer]

Funny - Yes let me elaborate on the socks. I have two girls - 12 & 14 and they wander out of the house all the time getting their socks dirty and wearing through them and I've told them not to a million times. So as a parent, I had to comment. It was all in good fun.

 

[kiljoy]

Hmmm, a little late, but I'll give it a shot. I own a concord vine. I think they look too small and dark for a concord grape.

Here is a link to grapes that grow in your state.

http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/DG1103.html

 

[Manimal]

I agree that they look far too small to be concord. In addition, concord is a variety with mainly labrusca parentage and the leaves don't look like labrusca to me... too small and not leathery enough. Are the leaves rusty coloured and hairy on the underside? If not, concord is definitely out of the running.

Actually, both the leaves and fruit look alot like the Marechal Foch I have growing. But they should be pretty sweet when fully ripe if they are Foch.

Good luck with the identification. If you have a university or college with an agriculture/horticulture/botany department, you might try contacting them.