A food writer falls in love with a local grape that sings to her family’s Italian heritage.

technique & recipes Annette Januzzi Wick

Sitting on the breakfast terrace of an agriturismo in Abruzzo, Italy, I bit into the mounded center of a soft, crescent-shaped cookie. A burst of grape flavor spilled onto my tongue. I discovered this same jammy taste of grape marmalade, or marmellata d’uva, later in the week when I nibbled on crostatas before my morning tours.

Mid-fall, I returned to Cincinnati and popped in to shop at Madison’s at Findlay Market. One of their endcaps displayed mounds of Concord grapes. Co-owner Laura Riley said they wouldn’t be around for long. Concords were the perfect replacement for the Montepulciano grapes, used in the Italian cookies and crostatas, not available to me in the States. And in my Italian-American household, our family referred to Concords as Italian grapes because my grandfather Luigi grew them in his sideyard for wine.

Using an online recipe for grape marmalade, I cooked a batch, waited for the jam in the jars to cool, then spooned it into and on everything, including pies, pretzels, and aged white cheddar. For Christmas, I baked the cookies I discovered abroad, celli ripieni, or stuffed birds, using the marmalade as the filling.

It’s rare that Americans can lay claim to an export to Italy. The Concord grape is one such claim. Introduced to Italy in 1925, Concords, called uva fragola in Italy due to their strawberry flavor and bitter skins, are featured in a few of Italy’s enticing pastries throughout late summer and fall.

Concord History

Also known as the fox grape due to its earthy scent, the Concord grape, Vitis labrusca, is categorized as a slip-skin grape because the skins easily slide off when the fruit is squeezed between the index finger and thumb. According to the Concord Grape Association, the cultivation of the variety, native to the eastern U.S. and Canada, has been credited to Ephraim Wales Bull, a goldsmith, politician, horticulturist, and farmer who lived near Concord, MA. As early as the 1840s, Bull began testing more than 22,000 seedlings cultivated from wild Vitis labrusca before he was satisfied with the taste, flavor, and shape of the Concord.

Deep purplish-blue with rounded fruit, its bunches grow off long stems from the vine. Concords have somewhat larger seeds and are highly aromatic, as my husband, who passed through the kitchen when I boiled the grapes, can attest.

Growing Grapes

Nathan Sauerhage of Backyard Orchard in Rising Sun, IN, is a second-generation farmer. His father, Dennis, planted Concords when establishing the farm in 1994. “Some of these vines are 20 to 25 years old,” he says of the first stretch we encounter in the farm’s front orchard, which had been pruned already to keep the vines tight. Another run of Concords is planted behind the peach and apple trees, along with a second variety of grapes, John Viola.

Sauerhage notes that Concords are easy to grow, any disease they’re susceptible to fairly preventable. During my visit in early June, the grapes appear healthy and to be enjoying the dry air and breezes off the Ohio River. “In 2020, when we were frosted out of apples and peaches,” Sauerhage says, “our grapes bloomed again.” Another plus to growing these grapes.

Where to Buy

The major growing areas for Concord grapes are the Finger Lakes District of New York, Lake Erie (known as the Concord Grape Belt), Lake Ontario, Southwestern Michigan, and the Yakima Valley in Washington. They can also be found growing in the wild.

Beginning late August or early September (due to the grapes ripening unevenly), Nathan and his father begin to sell their estimated 20 bushels of grapes in quart baskets to local farmers’ markets, including Findlay Market, Hyde Park, Northside, and Madiera, and on the farm if you happen to call or stop by.

Frank Stier and Laura Riley from Madison’s at Findlay Market source grapes locally and from Michigan. “Especially this year, we are never sure of what to expect when it comes to Mother Nature,” Stier says. They also stock bottled Concord grape juice from Indiana’s Biersdorfer Orchard.

Hidden Valley Orchards in Lebanon, OH, cultivates Concord grapes, but does not produce enough for a U-pick season, according to marketing consultant Becky Moss. “Sometimes our wine tastings are hosted amidst our grape vines if weather permits,” she says. Hidden Valley’s Midwest Wine Fest will be held on September 23, with a wine tasting from national and international distributors; this year, proceeds will go to Big Brothers Big Sisters.

Eating the Grapes

We’re familiar with Concord grapes for their use in juices and jellies. The rich, deep color makes them appealing to even the pickiest eater. When asked if Nathan’s children help during harvest, he says, “They’re better at eating them than picking them.” Studies have also shown that eating purple foods can lower one’s blood pressure and reduce inflammation. Concords, like red wine, are rich in polyphenols.

Most Concord grapes sold contain seeds. Like other seed fruits, you can slice open the grapes and remove the seeds with a grapefruit spoon, or you can pop the whole grape in your mouth and spit out the seeds before swallowing the flesh. Eating the seeds or skin is a matter of personal preference.

Press grapes into focaccia before baking for that added burst of flavor, add them to polenta while cooking, or toss them into chicken or tuna salads. Roast them in a skillet until they crack open, spread fresh ricotta over bruschetta, then spoon the grapes on top. Finish with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar reduction. Another option is to skewer them and add to your shrimp or lamb kabobs for grilling. Use the jam as filling in cookies, pies, and other pastries. Warmed in a small pan, the jam makes a lovely sauce to accompany salmon.