Each of the more than 60,000 known varieties has unique color, flavor, aroma and size characteristics. Everything indicates that the first ancestors of the current vines appeared millions of years ago in Greenland. From there, they reached America, Asia and Europe, where the two main groups of fruit emerged. The first brings together types of the species Vitis vinifera, which first appeared on the Asian continent, but later spread across Europe. “These are the highest quality varieties, generally used to make noble wines. Some examples are the famous French grapes merlot, cabernet and chardonnay. Only 20% of the types belong to this group”, says agronomist Fernando Picarelli Martins, consultant for the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) in Campinas (SP). The second group includes American vines, mainly the Vitis labrusca species.
Considered less refined, varieties such as the niagara grape are only used for cheap wines, but are very popular in food or in the preparation of jams and juices, in addition to having greater resistance to climate variations and diseases. In Brazil, the first grapes arrived with the colonizing expedition of Martim Afonso de Souza, in 1532, but cultivation only grew in the 19th century, with Italian immigration to the states of the southern region, which today concentrate 90% of the area cultivated with grapes. fruit in the country. Around here, the success of the grape comes with a custom: before appreciating the flavor, many people tend to despise the skin of the fruit. But experts guarantee that eating this natural packaging is not harmful. “There is no record of contamination by pesticides, because the producer respects a predetermined period between the application of the product and the sale. Anyway, just wash the grapes well before eating”, says Fernando.
With this simple precaution, it’s worth taking advantage of the nutritive benefits of the peel. «Recent studies indicate that it helps in immune protection and reduces the formation of free radicals, molecules that may be linked to the appearance of cancer in the body», says nutritionist Anita Sachs, from the Federal University of São Paulo (Unifesp).
Source: Fernando Picarelli Martins, consultant at Embrapa Technology Transfer – Business Office in Campinas, SP, and fellow of the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq).
Brazilian production data: Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics Foundation (FIBGE), 1999
Table and glassware The European ones are raw material for noble wines. Americans, for food
NATIONAL
champion juice
Also known as Isabel grape, it is the most planted type in Brazil, occupying almost half of the vines. The name is a tribute to the American Isabella Gibbs, who started growing it in the United States at the beginning of the 19th century. Excellent for the production of jams and juices, it suffers from fragility for transport and storage.
PINK NIAGARA
natural mutation
Also called pink grape, it is a Brazilian variety. It was discovered in the middle of a plantation of white niagaras in the vineyards of Louveira (SP) in 1933. Found by chance by a farmer, it spread throughout the state of São Paulo. The soft and sweet pulp fruit is the most consumed type of grape in the country.
CABERNET SAUVIGNON
exquisite bouquet
It is one of the most noble grapes, serving as the basis for the famous red wines from the Bordeaux region of France. The excellent quality of the drink, whose aroma and bouquet evolve with aging, made the culture expand through Italy, Spain, Greece and the United States. The cultivation of cabernet accounts for only 0.5% of the total number of grapes planted in Brazil.
THOMPSON
goodbye to the seed
It is the most planted type in the world. Originally called sultanina, it appeared in Asia Minor many centuries ago. In America, it was renamed in honor of William Thompson, who first cultivated it in California. Its great attraction is that it does not have seeds, which makes it the most popular grape in the United States. It is also used to produce raisins.
CHARDONNAY
Mandatory reference
This variety of small clusters is the most traditional in the production of white wines in the world. It gained fame in the 19th century, in the Burgundy region of France, and began to be planted in Brazil in the 1980s. Around here, production has increased in the last 15 years, but still represents only 0.1% of the total vineyards cultivated .
WHITE MUSCATELL
millennial cradle
Arriving probably in ancient Greece, this yellowish-green grape with a strong aroma has adapted well to the different continents to which it was taken. In each country, it received a different name – “moscatel” appeared in the region of Setúbal, in Portugal. In Brazil, it is used for food and in the production of white wines.
ITALY
popular flavor
Baptized by the Italian Alberto Pirovano in 1927, it emerged from a cross between bicane and muscatel grapes from Hamburg. Its tasty pulp is not usually used for the production of wines, but it is a type that is very appreciated as a fresh fruit. It has a pink version, called ruby grape in Brazil.
MERLOT
traditional red
Along with cabernet, pinot noir and syrah, it is considered one of the four most requested types for red wines. It also appeared in Bordeaux, France. In 1900, he settled in Rio Grande do Sul, where more than 5 thousand tons per year (0.6% of national production) serve as raw material for the beverage.