Molecular genetics ready to launch a golden age of winegrape breeding
Wednesday, January 7, 2015 - 09:30
in Biology & Nature
Growing winegrapes may be the most backward form of horticulture that exists. The vast majority of the world's production uses only about 20 cultivars out of thousands of available grape varieties. The wine industry is convinced these traditionally-cultivated varieties alone provide all the diversity necessary and that newly-bred varieties can't compete on wine quality. This belief persists in the face of modern genetic evidence that many of the world's traditional varieties were intentionally bred from older ones. But things may start to shift as wineries in highly-recognized regions cope with a changing climate.