Hm I've done grape cuttings years ago. The SIC (sapling-in-chief) is thinking about making balsamic vinegar.
This thread is the first mention that labrusca is hearty on OH. is trebbiano also?
Also the Google search monster isn't turning up much to shop from...
Post script: "Labrusca" riverside grape is not "Lambrusco", *Bing*, well lets see who replies. Maybe there is a way out of all this fudge yet.
Labrusca isn't a variety, it's a species - Vitis labrusca.
There are very few pure Vitis labrusca varieties because it's usually crossed with Vitis vinifera (European grape) to improve quality and Vitis riparia (Riverbank grape) to improve hardiness.
Vitis labrusca was used in breeding because disease pressure in most of the Eastern US are too high for Vitis vinifera (European grape) to survive. Vitis labrusca being native is much more hardy and disease resistant.
Almost all " labrusca" varieties are in fact hybrids between Vitis labrusca (Fox grape - native to the eastern US) and Vitis vinifera (European grape - used for wine and sold for eating in stores). Some contain other American species too, often Vitis riparia (Riverbank grape - a hardy species and the most common, native to a huge area of the US and Canada).
Hybrid varieties with it are often termed "labrusca" because this species very strongly passes on many of its own flavour characteristics.
Characteristics of Vitis labrusca are soft flesh, thick skin, strong aromatic flavour often described as being something like blueberries or alpine strawberries - these are a rough guide but it's quite distinct.
Flavour can vary from bad to very nice. The cultivated hybrid varieties have of course been selected for good flavour.
You'd be better searching for individual varieties as Google confuses labrusca with the Italian Vitis vinifera variety Labrusco.
Here are a few -
*Alden - not as hardy or disease resistant as most and flavour more like Vitis vinifera (European grape), but big berries and good quality.
*Alwood - very disease resistant, good quality, nice labrusca flavours.
*Beta - hybrid containing another American species - Vitis riparia as well for added hardiness. Typical labrusca quality, this is for jelly and juice really.
*Campbell early - good labrusca flavour, tastes like a mild Concord. Fyi Concord is the grape used to make Welches purple grape juice and is the stereotypical labrusca flavour by which the other varieties are judged.
*Cayuga - good quality for wine and eating.
*Concord - better varieties exist now but it is the oldest and best known.
*Edelweiss - hardy and disease resistant, also contains Vitis riparia. Mild labrusca flavour, nice table variety.
*Isabella - one of the few labrusca grapes to still be popular in Europe. Very adaptable to different climates, even mutated in Hawaii to cope with lack of cold induced winter dormancy effectively becoming an evergreen there. Average quality.
*New York Muscat - very nice flavour which is a mix of labrusca and the Muscat-type European grapes. For sweet, fragrant wines and eating.
*Ontario - not exceptional in itself but the parent of a great deal of varieties because of its mild flavour and earliness.
*Schuyler - very productive, sweet berries with mild labrusca flavour.
*Trollhaugen - like a mild Concord but hardier and more disease resistant. Variety also contains Vitis riparia.
Seedless varieties -
*Canadice - hardy for a seedless grape, very productive, nice flavour.
*Himrod - very good honey-like flavour but has a bad habit of dropping the fruit, but not really a problem for home growers.
*Lakemont - like Himrod which is its sibling, but without the problems, but flavour is milder.
*Mars - like a mild, seedless Concord. Very disease resistant.
*Somerset seedless - hardiest seedless grape. Small grapes but nice flavour. Also contains Vitis riparia and other American species.
*Venus - another mild, seedless Concord type but better quality berries than Mars.
I'd suggest eating some native grape varieties or trying some jams, jellies and juices made from American varieties such as Concord.
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As for Trebbiano - it's a Vitis vinifera variety. Not hardy beyond zone 7, not very disease resistant and not likely to thrive in most of the US.
The flavour to me is sweet with a very, very mild hint of bananas in well ripened grapes. You sometimes get this with grapes - hints of other fruits, there are varieties with hints of strawberries, blueberries, blackcurrants, bananas or even citrus fruits.
The Vitis genes can throw out a wide range of flavours.
