North Carolina wine
Encyclopedia
North Carolina wine refers to wine
made from grape
s grown in the U.S. state of North Carolina
. Wine has been produced in the area since the early days of Europe
an colonization in the 17th century. wine growers
in North Carolina were the first to cultivate a native American grape variety, the Scuppernong
, which produces a sweet wine, examples of which are still being made in the state. Most wine produced in North Carolina since the year 2000 is made from vitis vinifera
grape varieties, although French hybrid and Vitis labrusca
varieties remain common.
North Carolina ranks tenth in both grape and wine production in the United States. In 2007, North Carolina contained 55 wineries and 350 vineyards. By 2011, this had grown to more than 100 wineries and more than 400 vineyards.
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
made from grape
Grape
A grape is a non-climacteric fruit, specifically a berry, that grows on the perennial and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis. Grapes can be eaten raw or they can be used for making jam, juice, jelly, vinegar, wine, grape seed extracts, raisins, molasses and grape seed oil. Grapes are also...
s grown in the U.S. state of North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
. Wine has been produced in the area since the early days of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an colonization in the 17th century. wine growers
Viticulture
Viticulture is the science, production and study of grapes which deals with the series of events that occur in the vineyard. When the grapes are used for winemaking, it is also known as viniculture...
in North Carolina were the first to cultivate a native American grape variety, the Scuppernong
Scuppernong
The scuppernong is a large variety of muscadine , a species of grape native to the southeastern United States. It is usually a greenish or bronze color and is similar in appearance and texture to a white grape, but rounder and larger and first known as the 'big white grape'...
, which produces a sweet wine, examples of which are still being made in the state. Most wine produced in North Carolina since the year 2000 is made from vitis vinifera
Vitis vinifera
Vitis vinifera is a species of Vitis, native to the Mediterranean region, central Europe, and southwestern Asia, from Morocco and Portugal north to southern Germany and east to northern Iran....
grape varieties, although French hybrid and Vitis labrusca
Vitis labrusca
Vitis labrusca is a species of grapevines belonging to the Vitis genus in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The vines are native to the eastern United States and are the source of many grape cultivars, including Catawba and Concord grapes, and many hybrid grape varieties such as Agawam,...
varieties remain common.
North Carolina ranks tenth in both grape and wine production in the United States. In 2007, North Carolina contained 55 wineries and 350 vineyards. By 2011, this had grown to more than 100 wineries and more than 400 vineyards.