Cornell University Wants You to Name That Grape

 

Cornell University Wants You to Name That Grape

Cornell University is seeking suggestions to name a new cold-tolerant variety. (Photo: Bruce Reisch)

Cornell University is seeking the public’s help in naming the newest grape variety.

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Currently dubbed ‘NY98.0228.02,’ the grape is a seedless, flavorful berry with the attractive blue coloring of a ‘Concord’ at nearly double the size. Bruce Reisch, professor of grapevine breeding and genetics in Cornell University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, said the new variety is well adapted to the Northeast, with good cold-tolerance for most of the Eastern states, including New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and New Jersey.

“This grape is the first truly seedless ‘Concord’-type and has naturally large, attractive berries,” Cornell University’s grape breeder Reisch told The Cornell Chronicle.  “Our new grapes weigh 5 or 6 grams per berry, almost twice the weight of a traditional ‘Concord.’ It’s pretty rare to find a grape that size, especially with such full flavor.”

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Reisch said he hopes the contest will inspire a name as inviting as the grape. Submissions can be made online or by emailing [email protected] until July 31. Reisch and his collaborators at Double A Vineyards will decide on their favorites, then present the choices to the public for a final vote in September.

‘NY98.0228.02’ will be exclusively licensed to Double A Vineyards in Fredonia, NY, for 10 years in the U.S., then it will be nonexclusively available for licensing. For information on licensing Cornell grape varieties, email Jessica Lyga of the Cornell Center for Technology Licensing at [email protected] or call 607-255-0270.

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