Fall is my favorite time of the year. I could tell you dozens of reasons why, but I will limit my rambling to just two of them. Fall is when muscadine grapes get ripe, and fall is the time for county fairs.

As a young boy growing up on a farm, I can remember standing under my grandmother's grapevines this time of year and eating grapes until I could hold no more. I did not know a thing about the grapes I was enjoying except that they were delicious.

Muscadine grapes were growing in this region when the pioneers first explored the new world. As he traveled through what is now the Cape Fear river basin area in 1524, Italian navigator Giovanni de Verrazzono reported seeing ".... many vines growing naturally there..."

Our summers are usually so hot and humid that other varieties of grapes either will not live here or do not grow very well here. But since they are native to this area, Muscadine grapes thrive in the heat and humidity that normally accompanies our summers. In addition, being native, muscadine grapes usually do not have very many disease or insect problems.

Muscadine grapes are usually large with thick skins. They typically contain four seeds and grow in loose clusters rather than in bunches. Bunch grapes are harvested by clipping the entire bunch, but muscadine grapes are usually harvested by picking individual berries. Mechanical harvesters with long vibrating fingers are frequently used to pick muscadine grapes.

When early settlers arrived in American, they were familiar with Muscat grapes, which are still grown in France and are used for making Muscatel wine. The word muscat is derived from the Latin word muscus, which describes the smell of male musk deer. These settlers called the sweet, musk-scented grapes that they found here by the same name as the sweet grapes they had known in Europe. The name they used eventually became Muscadine.

Many people are confused with the term Muscadine and Scuppernong. Muscadine is a broad category of grape that includes many cultivars of both bronze and black grapes. The bronze varieties include Scuppernong, Carlos, Magnolia, Fry, and Triumph. The black varieties include Noble, Nesbitt, Black Fry, Supreme, and Isom. So all Scuppernong grapes are Muscadine grapes, but not all Muscadine grapes are Scuppernong grapes.

Since Scuppernong is one of the oldest and most popular varieties of Muscadine grapes, this name is often used to refer to any of the bronze or lighter colored Muscadines. With the increasing popularity of grapes for table use and for wines, many new varieties are being developed. In fact, some hybrid varieties are now becoming very popular.

The North Carolina Muscadine Grape Association has lots of additional information about muscadine grapes, and they are seeking new members. You can find out more about them from their web site at www.ncmuscadine.org.

Wines and wineries have become very popular in North Carolina. You might want to visit the website at www.visitncwine.com for more information about the wineries in the state.

More and more people are developing the hobby of amateur winemaking. North Carolina allows individuals to make up to 200 gallons of wine each year for their own use or to give to their friends. Amateur winemakers are not allowed to sell their wines.

Because amateur winemaking is becoming such a popular hobby, the Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair now includes an Amateur Wine Exhibit and Contest as part of their home exhibits. This exhibit is sponsored by Lumber River Trading Company with hope that it will motivate people to learn more about how to make quality wines and will provide recognition to those who have developed the skills necessary to make high-quality wines.

The contest at the county fair offers very attractive prizes and ribbons. All wines entered in this event will be judged on their own merit, so they don't actually compete against other wines. Each wine will be presented a blue, red, or white ribbon along with appropriate prize money depending upon how that wine scores in relation to color, clarity, bouquet, flavor, and overall presentation. Categories are available for white or red wines, viniferous or muscadine, and for various fruit wines. Those entering wines in this event and winning the blue ribbons will definitely have bragging rights that they make the best wine in the region.

Amateur winemakers from Robeson or any adjoining county may enter their best wines in this exhibit. Wines must be entered on Sunday, September 28, from 1 - 6 p.m.; Monday, September 29, from 4 - 8 p.m.; or Tuesday, September 30, from 4 - 8 p.m. Those visiting the fair will be able to watch certified wine judges as they judge the wines in the Home Exhibit Building at 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 4.

If you are a hobby winemaker and would like to enter your wines in the Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair, please call me at 910-671-3276, so I can mail you the complete information about this exhibit and contest. If you have friends or acquaintances in Robeson or any adjoining county who are hobby winemakers, please share this information with them.

E-mail address: Everett_Davis@ncsu.edu

Mailing Address:
P. O. Box 2280
Lumberton, NC 28359-2280

Phone: 910-671-3276
Fax: 910-671-6278

Date Created 10/15/08