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vi·nif·era | \ vī-ˈni-f(ə-)rə 
\
\ plural vinifera or viniferas
Definition of vinifera
: a common European grape (Vitis vinifera) that is the chief source of Old World wine and table grape varieties
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Examples of vinifera in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web It was long thought that the region was just too cold for the vinifera species, especially for red grapes.
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Fortune, "Winemakers in New York’s Finger Lakes Region Are Moving Beyond Riesling," 31 Aug. 2019 There were also several flights of wines made with fruit, berries and non-vinifera grapes like concord.
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Michael Alberty | For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive.com, "Home winemakers go for gold at Oregon State Fair competition," 14 Aug. 2019 Phylloxera is particularly attracted to Vitis vinifera roots and will feast on them to the point where a vine no longer produces fruit.
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Michael Alberty | For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, "Walla Walla vineyards face threat of phylloxera, insect that ruins grapevine production," 4 Sep. 2019 These vines are of the European Vitis vinifera species, which produce familiar grapes like cabernet sauvignon and merlot.
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Michael Alberty | For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, "Walla Walla vineyards face threat of phylloxera, insect that ruins grapevine production," 4 Sep. 2019 In fact, two of the top four vinifera varieties grown there are red.
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Fortune, "Winemakers in New York’s Finger Lakes Region Are Moving Beyond Riesling," 31 Aug. 2019 There were reds, whites and pinks made with a variety of Vitis vinifera wine grapes ranging from sauvignon blanc and semillon to syrah and Oregon’s famed pinot noir.
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Michael Alberty | For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive.com, "Home winemakers go for gold at Oregon State Fair competition," 14 Aug. 2019 Frontenac was a hybrid: 50 percent from a wild Vitis riparia American vine, and 50 percent from Vitis vinifera, the European grapevine.
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Kevin Begos, Smithsonian, "The Quest to Grow the First Great American Wine Grape," 6 June 2018 In the vitis vinifera species of grapes that makes all of the world’s best wine.
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Gar Joseph, Philly.com, "Cheap Buzz: The Genetics of Wine Color," 18 Oct. 2017
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'vinifera.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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Time Traveler for vinifera
The first known use of vinifera was in 1888
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