🍇 Georg

Georg is a table grape with dark berries, bred in Austria. According to VIVC, it is an interspecific cross by the breeders G. P. Weiss and G. Mayer (the Rebenzüchtung Weiss – Mayer nursery). Its parents are given as Eger 1 and Original, but this pedigree rests only on the breeders' data. VIVC gives 2008 as the year of plant variety protection, and samples of Georg are kept in 3 collections.

The state agency DLR Rheinpfalz in Germany describes Georg as a variety with good to very good resistance to fungal diseases and very high resistance to grey mould. The large, elongated-oval berries have a dark-blue skin with good colouring, the flesh is firm, and the taste is mild and fruity. The bunches are medium-sized and very loose, yet usually still closed. The vine grows strongly and upright, and its wood ripens well.

Picking maturity begins at the end of September, and the bunches can be harvested for 4–5 weeks. The authors advise patience: bunches that have already coloured should stay on the vine a while longer until they reach full flavour. Because it ripens late, the variety needs a good site. On the table grape variety list of Germany's Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE), Georg appears as a blue variety not marked as seedless.

Why it matters to you. Georg is an option for anyone looking for a late dark table grape: according to DLR Rheinpfalz, its main strengths are resistance to fungal diseases and grey mould and firm, fruity berries. At the same time, it is not a variety for a cold corner: for the bunches to ripen at the end of September, it needs a good, warm site.