Grape

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This article is about the fruits of the genus Vitis. For the European grapevine, see Vitis vinifera. For other
uses, see Grape (disambiguation).

Grapes

"White" table grapes

A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus Vitis.
Grapes are a non-climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters.

The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years ago, and the fruit has been used as human food
over history. Eaten fresh or in dried form (as raisins, currants and sultanas), grapes also hold cultural
significance in many parts of the world, particularly for their role in winemaking. Other grape-derived
products include various types of jam, juice, vinegar and oil.

Grapes, red or green

Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)

Energy 288 kJ (69 kcal)

Carbohydrates

18.1 g

Sugars 15.48 g

Dietary fiber 0.9 g

Fat

0.16 g

Protein

0.72 g

Vitamins Quantity%DV†
Thiamine (B1) 6%0.069 mg

Riboflavin (B2) 6%0.07 mg

Niacin (B3) 1%0.188 mg

Pantothenic acid (B5) 1%0.05 mg

Vitamin B6 7%0.086 mg

Folate (B9) 1%2 μg

Choline 1%5.6 mg

Vitamin C 4%3.2 mg

Vitamin E 1%0.19 mg

Vitamin K 14%14.6 μg

Minerals Quantity%DV†

Calcium1%10 mg

Iron 3%0.36 mg

Magnesium 2%7 mg

Manganese 3%0.071 mg

Phosphorus 3%20 mg

Potassium 4%191 mg

Sodium 0%2 mg

Zinc 1%0.07 mg

Other constituents Quantity

Water 81 g

Link to USDA Database entry

Units

μg = micrograms • mg = milligrams

IU = International units

†Percentages are roughly approximated using US recommendations for adults.

Source: USDA FoodData Central

Contents
1 History

2 Description

2.1 Nutrition

3 Grapevines

4 Trade

5 Distribution and production

6 Table and wine grapes

7 Seedless grapes

8 Raisins, currants and sultanas

9 Juice

10 Pomace and phytochemicals

10.1 Skin

10.2 Seeds

10.3 Resveratrol

11 Health claims

11.1 French paradox

11.2 Grape and raisin toxicity in dogs

12 In religion

13 Gallery

14 See also

15 References

16 Further reading

17 External links

History

The Middle East is generally described as the homeland of grape and the cultivation of this plant began
there 6,000–8,000 years ago.[1][2] Yeast, one of the earliest domesticated microorganisms, occurs
naturally on the skins of grapes, leading to the discovery of alcoholic drinks such as wine. The earliest
archeological evidence for a dominant position of wine-making in human culture dates from 8,000 years
ago in Georgia.[3][4][5]
The oldest known winery was found in Armenia, dating to around 4000 BC.[6] By the 9th century AD, the
city of Shiraz was known to produce some of the finest wines in the Middle East. Thus it has been
proposed that Syrah red wine is named after Shiraz, a city in Persia where the grape was used to make
Shirazi wine.[7]

Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics record the cultivation of purple grapes, and history attests to the ancient
Greeks, Cypriots, Phoenicians, and Romans growing purple grapes both for eating and wine production.
[8] The growing of grapes would later spread to other regions in Europe, as well as North Africa, and
eventually in North America.

In 2005 a team of archaeologists concluded that some Chalcolithic wine jars, which were discovered in
Cyprus in the 1930s, were the oldest of their kind in the world, dating back to 3,500 BC.[9] Moreover,
Commandaria, a sweet dessert wine from Cyprus, is the oldest manufactured wine in the world, its
origins traced as far back as 2000 BC.[10]

In North America, native grapes belonging to various species of the genus Vitis proliferate in the wild
across the continent, and were a part of the diet of many Native Americans, but were considered by
early European colonists to be unsuitable for wine. In the 19th century, Ephraim Bull of Concord,
Massachusetts, cultivated seeds from wild Vitis labrusca vines to create the Concord grape which would
become an important agricultural crop in the United States.[11] high quality product.[33]