The Genetic Origins of Our Modern Grapevines

We live in unprecedented times. Modern science has advanced humankind and our planet more in the last 50 years than in the entire history of civilization.

These unprecedented times are a portent of even greater progress as science embraces ever-growing advances in technology, aided by new frontiers in machine-learning and artificial intelligence.

This glimpse into the future gave me pause to think about the scientific accomplishments in unlocking our past, whether it be our DNA strands or tracing our ancient beginnings. My thought process was triggered by recent findings I read about in a scientific journal. The field of archeology has benefited from technological advances in ways that are changing our perspective on who we are, who we were and how we subsisted for the thousands of years we’ve inhabited our planet.

But recently, the underlying precepts of discovery (archeological digs) as hard scientific truths have been challenged by investigation (genome studies). Case in point: the journal Science has reported a study conducted by 89 researchers from 23 different institutions. The mission: to identify the origins of today’s grape varieties. The study followed techniques similar to those employed in archeology.

Field research was conducted to gather samples of grapevines across the many regions where grapevines were known to exist. Modern genomic technology was then applied in laboratories to sequence the origins of the vines. While archeologists were dusting winemaking artifacts found in Georgia to ascertain their age, genome scientists were splicing genes to go beyond winemaking, instead focusing on the origin and age of ancient grapevines.

Archeologists have successfully dated winemaking artifacts to a period 8,000 years ago. Genome scientists have dated the origins of cultivated grapevines to a period 11,000 years ago.

While this comparison and dating may seem a refinement in historical context, the genome study has drawn conclusions from a different perspective.

By collecting and analyzing 2,448 different grapevine varieties from across a wide swath of our planet, scientists have concluded that the origin of grapevines – and their domestication as an agricultural product – has followed an unexpected path. A brief recap of their findings:

1. It has been determined that wild grapevines have existed for over 400,000 years.
2. A glacial shift 11,000 years ago in an area in Asia segregated the indigenous population. The ensuing climate prompted the domestication of grapevine plantings.
3. Our predecessors began growing grapevines in two distinct parts of the world: the Caucasus region, comprised of modern-day Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijani, and the Levant region encompassing Israel, Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan. These wild grapevines were termed Vitis Sylvestris.
4. As ancient populations spread across the then-known world, they brought their culture and agriculture with them, including Vitis Sylvestris. Initially grown for table grapes, they eventually were grown for producing fermented juice and its ultimate expression, wine.
5. The Caucasus inhabitants remained in place, not venturing far afield. The Levant inhabitants began to migrate, bringing their culture and grapevines with them, east to India and China and north and west to north Africa, the Balkans and eventually western Europe.
6. It was in western Europe that Vitis Sylvestris was cross-bred with local wild grapevines. The resulting cultivars were termed Vitis Vinifera, the genesis of modern-day grapevines.
7. The study concluded that four genetically similar grape varieties, evolving over time, now account for the majority of the modern-day varieties we consume.

Breakthroughs in genome technology have made historic inroads into many divergent fields of scientific study. The study of the origin of grapevines bodes well for our continuing understanding of wine and its future, including the evolutionary effects of climate change in vineyards.

As the subject of my column last week posited: “It’s like putting new wine in old bottles.” A corollary: There is deep history in every bottle of wine. Consider these findings the next time you experience a glass of your favorite wine.

Nick Antonaccio is a 45-year Pleasantville resident. For over 25 years, he has conducted wine tastings and lectures. Nick is a member and program director of the Wine Media Guild of wine journalists. He also offers personalized wine tastings. Nick’s credo: continuous experimenting results in instinctive behavior. You can reach him at nantonaccio@theexaminernews.com or on Twitter @sharingwine.

Nick Antonaccio