Walk into a typical Grocery store (at least a typical Midwestern grocery store) and on any given day you'll find between 2 and 4 varieties of grapes for sale. The most popular are the Red and White Seedless varieties. In the Midwest, the White grapes are often marketed as Thompson Seedless, while the Reds are marketed as Flame Seedless. The white grapes have a sweet, mild flavor, while the red variety has a sharper edge, but still quite sweet. Occasionally, a store will get a shipment of Black seedless grapes. The final common grape are Red Globe grapes, which are not seedless. It tastes similar to the red seedless varieties, though is bigger and contains a seed. Together, all of these grapes are considered Table Grapes, since they are meant for the table. Other varieties exist, such as Concorde grapes, which are popular in making Grape Juice, Jam, and Jelly.
The rest of the grapes of the world are classified as Wine grapes. They differ from Table grapes by being smaller, having thicker skins, and are almost always seeded. In addition to oaking and aging, it is the unique characteristics of each different Wine grape that gives each wine its unique flavor. Once a month, I'll cover a different variety of grape common to the Midwest
At least 68 different varieties of grapes are grown in the Midwest, including:
Aurore
Baco Noir
Bluebell
Cabernet Franc
Cabernet Sauvignon
Carmine
Catawba
Cayuga
Chambourcin
Chancellor
Chardonnel
Chardonnay
Chelois
Concord
Couderc Noir
De Chaunac
Delaware
Diamond
Edelweiss
Elvira
Frontenac
Frontenac Gris
Gamay Noir
Geisenheim
Gewürztraminer
Golden Muscat
Kerner
La Crescen
La Crosse
Landot
Lemberger
Leon Millot
Malbec
Marechal Foch
Merlot
Muscadine
Muscat Canelli
New York Musca
Niagara
Norton
Pinot Gris
Pinot Meunier
Pinot Noir
Rayon d'Or
Reliance
Riesling
Rougeon
Ruby Cabernet
Sabrevois
Sangiovese
Sauvignon Blanc
Seyval Blanc
St. Croix
St. Pepin
St. Vincent
Steuben
Syrah
Touriga Francesa
Traminette
Valiant
Vidal Blanc
Vignoles
Villard Blanc
Vilard Noir
Viognier
Vivant
Zinfandel
Zweigelt
I admit that I hadn't really known that that there was a difference between wine grapes and table grapes until I had attended a luncheon that was sponsored by Oliver Winery, where Bill Oliver spoke.
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