Wheeler

The red grape variety originates from the USA. Synonyms are Bergerac, Bull's Seedling, Concord Crni, Corin, Cornin, Dalmadin, Fehérhatu, Fekete Noah, Furmin Noir, Gorin, Gurin, Jurka, Kék Olasz, Koncord, Konkordi, Konkordia, Nyarfalevelü, Nyarlevelü, Olasz Kék, Paul Revere, Ripadella, Ripatella, Ripertella, Ripotella, Varatura and Wheeler. Some synonyms refer to the cultivar Ripatella, which used to be considered distinct. It was not until 2016 that DNA analyses in Geisenheim (Rheingau) established that this is genetically identical to Concord. The exact lineage of Concord was also determined in 2016 at the Julius Kühn Institute (Geilweilerhof) by DNA analyses. It originates from a presumably natural cross between Catawba (Vitis labrusca x Sémillon) x Vitis labrusca. Two mutations are Concord Clone 30 and King.

History of origins

The Concord was the result of ten years of elaborate selection. Ephraim Wales Bull (1806-1895), known as the "Father of the Concord Grape", planted the seeds of a wild vine in the town of Concord in Massachusetts in 1843 and propagated 22,000 cuttings. From these he selected a single vine by 1849. Nearby stood a Catawba vine, which had always been suspected as a parent. This he propagated and selected further. The final result was presented in 1853, about which there is even a historical record. Bull named the variety after the nearby town of Concord in 1854. From the 1860s onwards, it found wide distribution in the northeastern USA as...