Isabella in my garden

I'd like to share my experience growing Isabella grapes. We love this variety, which is native to America and a hybrid. To create it, breeders used Vitis vinifera and Vitis lambrusca, that is, a varietal and a wild grape.

We use Isabella to make juices and wine for the winter, and we drink it fresh. It has a distinctive flavor, of course, but it's quite pleasant.

Brief description

Oh, first off, I'll tell you that this variety dates back to 1816. You can imagine how ancient it is! Isabella ripens in about 150-180 days (depending on the weather – if there's not enough sun, it might not ripen at all). Another thing I like about this variety is that it can be harvested as late as November, when there's almost no other gardening to do.

Now about the characteristics:

• the vine grows quickly and fills the entire arch, so if this is not required, it is better to carry out summer pruning, so to speak, shaping the bush;
• the clusters are cone-shaped, they are not too large, but not small either;
• the density of the berries is good, so the fruits do not fall off when the bunches are cut;
• the berries are not very large, especially if there are too many bunches;
• the shape of the fruit is round, the color is bluish-dark;
• the surface of the berries is always covered with a waxy coating;
• the pulp is of a slimy type, but this is precisely what makes it easy to separate from the dense skin;
• there are not many seeds – maximum 2 pcs.;
• taste – it is very pronounced and has nutmeg notes (and to me it also gives off a taste of black currant);
• The aroma – I would say not very good, it reminds me of the smell of wet wool, although not too repulsive.

These are the beautiful, dense clusters growing in my garden:

What do you like about Isabella?

I can't help but write about the benefits of this wonderful variety. What we especially note:

• great taste, with muscat, so the wine turns out very pleasant;
• good yield - one shoot produces about 4-5 bunches, and there are a lot of shoots on the bush (I didn’t measure the kilograms, but the harvest is always abundant);
• I don’t cover the bush for the winter (I live in the Voronezh region);
• berries, if there is frost, do not spoil, but easily survive it;
• I hardly take care of the bush and don’t spray it, because its immunity is very high (if my other varieties get sick with powdery mildew and mildew, then Isabella never does);
• I rarely fertilize the soil, because the variety is not demanding in terms of composition (sometimes it seems to me that Isabella will bear fruit even on a rock);
• excellent transportability (I sometimes give it to relatives in another region);
• care does not take much time;
• the versatility of berries – I mean the application;
• ease of reproduction and landings – I have never met a grape variety whose cuttings take root 100%, there have never been any failures;
• decorativeness - even when there are a lot of berries, the bush grows tall, climbs well along the created fence and looks magnificent;
• low calorie content - 100 g of berries contain only 65 kcal;
• stored for several months.

By the way, I always use the dry method for storage. Specifically, I don't pick the bunches or wash them, but rather place them in a box with wood shavings and put them in the cellar. You can also use paper between them, I've tried it.

I store them in bunches like these, the only thing I do is pick off the unusable berries:

What don't I like about Isabella?

There are also some drawbacks that we personally noticed. I'll list them so that those who want to grow this variety are prepared for the "troubles":

• There are few seeds, but they are large - for me this is a minus, since there is less pulp left in the berries;
• it ripens late – in autumn, although on the other hand this is a significant advantage, but sometimes you want to enjoy the muscat taste earlier;
• watering is necessary - without it the bush dries out;
• If the soil is over-watered or the weather is characterized by prolonged rains, anthracnose may appear.

They also say the berries contain a lot of methyl alcohol, which is harmful to the body. It forms during fermentation. For this reason, Isabella winemaking was supposedly banned in Europe and other countries. But we don't drink large quantities of wine, so we've never noticed any harm.

You know, everything should be in moderation. Besides, I've also seen reports that the methyl alcohol claims haven't been confirmed. To be fair, I'll say for myself that this alcohol is an ingredient in many strong alcoholic beverages.

If you want to know what other grape varieties are available for making wine and how they differ from others, check out this information.