Rosette Grapes

Availability: Sep 14 - Sep 17

About Rosette Grapes
Rosette grapes are a French-American red-berry hybrid variety. Created by Albert Seibel by crossing Jaeger 70 with Vitis vinifera, Rosette grapes are also referred to as Seibel 1000. They are a common ancestor of St. Pepin and La Crosse grapes. Rosette grapes are highly susceptible to powdery mildew, moderately susceptible to black rot and downy mildew, but are not sensitive to injuries caused by sulfur applications. They are winter-hardy and can withstand conditions as cold as -15 degrees Fahrenheit.

As with almost all of Albert Seibel’s hybrid grapes, Rosette grapes are descended from four parent grapes: two European grapes, Aramon and Alicante Bouchet; one wild American grape, Jaeger 70; and one rootstock, AxR1. Although Albert Seibel bred tens of thousands of grapes, he did so by crossing and recrossing his original varieties, all of which were descended from the original four vines, making the basic gene pool of his varieties largely the same.

Flavor
Rosette grapes produce wines with pleasant flavors and are used extensively in creating rosé wines. Given how light the red fruit is, wines created from this grape variety inherent a light red coloring. Wines made from Rosette grapes have been described as acidic (but without a bad taste) and “hybrid-like”.

Uses
While they are a red grape, Rosette grapes can be treated as a white grape for winemaking purposes. The Rosette grape produces light red wines or rosé wines, both with a light body. In red wines, it is often blended with other grape varieties. Wine created from Rosette grapes can and should be consumed while it is young.

Rosette grapes can also be made into juices, and we here at Fulkerson think it makes a delicious cold-pressed fresh fruit juice.