German and Italian
immigrants played important roles in Missouri’s first wineries when they moved
to the rolling hills of Missouri searching for fertile ground to cultivate
vineyards. By the mid 1800’s Missouri
had established wineries that were known and respected worldwide.
In the late 1850’s a
blight struck the French Wine District of Rhone Valley caused by an American
born louse that destroyed much of the Vitis vinifera grape crop in France. This was a devastating loss to the economy of
France. Fortunately, Missouri's first
entomologist (bug scientist) Charles V. Riley made an important discovery. In
1871, at the invitation of the French government, Riley inspected France's
ailing grape crop. He diagnosed the problem as an infestation of phylloxera, an
American plant louse. He found that some Native American rootstocks were immune
to the advances of the dreaded louse. By grafting French vines onto them,
healthy grapes could be produced. Millions of cuttings of Missouri rootstock
were shipped to save the French wine industry from disaster. The city of Montpellier,
France erected a statue in Riley's honor, because of the significance of his
work and to commemorate this rescue.
Information sources for
the article were Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missouri_wine)
and Missouri Wine Country (http://www.missouriwinecountry.com/articles/history/)
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