Vitis Frontenac Blue Grape

A French-American hybrid, Vitis Frontenac Blue Grape is a woody deciduous grapevine that's ornamental as well as productive, prized for fruit and foliage. The vine blooms in tiny yellowish-green flowers in mid to late spring followed by medium-sized clusters of bluish-black fruit, harvestable late season, from late summer to late fall. The grapes are used to produce dry red wine, rose, and port. The grapes have high sugar and high acidity and may require malolactic fermentation during winemaking. Frontenac wines have a bold cherry flavor with blackberry, blackcurrant, and plum notes, which make them great dessert wines.

Vitis Frontenac Blue Grape is a hardy, vigorous vine. The first year, the grapevine should be allowed to run freely, but by the second or third year, it should be posted or staked after a heavy pruning, leaving only 2 or 3 buds on the strongest stem. As it grows, keep only the most vigorous sprout to form the main stem. Regular spraying and pruning will maximize fruit production. Grapevines can be cultivated on a wire trellis, espaliered on a courtyard wall, or trained on an arbor, pergola, or fence for a striking garden feature.

Grapevines grow best in sunny locations with deep, medium moist, well-draining soil but are adaptable to a wide range of soils and do especially well in clays and loams that have been improved with organic matter, if they have good drainage. Site location should be sheltered from winter winds. Shallow cultivation and mulch are beneficial.

The vine is self-fertile and will bear fruit without any pollen from other varieties.

Grapes ship as 1-year-old plants.