Muscadines are a native species of grape in the south and don’t develop the fungus, mildews and molds that other grape varieties do in our climate. For example, Concord grapes require a lot of sprays. Their leaves are devoured by Japanese Beetles, but for the most part the beetles do not bother the Muscadines. Oh, and did I say that Muscadines have an incredible flavor?
There are a number of vines on The Farm from an early planting back in the 70s that have now gone “wild.” Our community Brewer’s Coop just planted 300 additional vines that should start producing in a few years.
The vineyard above is a few miles down the road. This is what it looked like after 6 years from the initial planting.
The owner of the vineyard ran the grapes through his hand powered crusher, and then placed the mashed grapes and juice in gallon size plastic freezer bags. I put this batch in the freezer after I got home, saving them until later when I am ready to make my next batch of wine.