The red grape variety originates from the USA. Synonyms include Bacchus (there is no relation to this German new breed), Clinton Rose, Klinton, Plant des Carmes, Plant Pouzin, Roter Kilianer or Kilianer Rot, Klinton, Vorthington, Worthington, and Zephirin. The hybrid was discovered and selected in 1821 in a vineyard in the eponymous town of Clinton near Syracuse in the state of New York by student Hugh White.
Ancestry
It is presumably a natural interspecific cross between the species Vitis riparia x Vitis labrusca. It was a crossing partner of the new breeds Autuchon, Brant, Canada, Cornucopia, and Quassaic. Five openly flowered seedlings of Clinton are Bacchus Black, Blaue von Selbach, Golden Clinton, Peabody, and Vialla.
Characteristics
The early ripening, frost-resistant vine is extremely resilient against the phylloxera. It produces dark-colored, acid-driven red wines with subtle Foxton. The variety is also used as table grapes and as rootstock.
Cultivation areas
Towards the end of the 19th century, the vine was cultivated in Northern Italy and in the Italian Switzerland after the phylloxera catastrophe. Here it is grown under the names Erdbeerer, Fragola, or Uva Americano on 0.3 hectares in the canton of Graubünden and used for simple consumption wines named Americano and Fragolino. The variety is also widespread in the Northeast of the USA and is also cultivated in Brazil, but no stock was recorded in 2016 (Kym Anderson).
Source: Wine Grapes / J. Robinson, J. Harding, J. Vouillamoz / Penguin Books Ltd. 2012
Images: Ursula Brühl, Doris Schneider, Julius Kühn-Institut (JKI)
