vinifera

noun

vi·​nif·​era vī-ˈni-f(ə-)rə 

plural vinifera or viniferas

: a common European grape (Vitis vinifera) that is the chief source of Old World wine and table grape varieties

vinifera adjective

Examples of vinifera in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

According to Oregon State University’s Extension Service, more than 70,000 acres is devoted to growing hazelnuts in a region also well-suited to peaches, apples, and, of course, world-class vinifera grapes. —Leslie Kelly, Forbes, 27 Sep. 2024

Before the colonists’ vinifera vines died, however, the wind carried their pollen to wild grapevines nearby. —Alex Mayyasi, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Nov. 2023

At Davis, Walker bred grapes with resistance to Pierce’s disease, which kills vinifera but not American grapes, that was still 97 percent vinifera. —Alex Mayyasi, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Nov. 2023

There are three basic types: American (Vitis labrusca), European (Vitis vinifera), and muscadines (Vitis rotundifolia). —Arricca Elin Sansone, Country Living, 15 June 2023

Walker isolated a Pierce's disease-resistant gene in a wild American grape species, then crossed it with Vitis vinifera. —Esther Mobley, San Francisco Chronicle, 20 May 2021

Centuries later, Spanish missionaries and conquistadors introduced European vinifera vines to the Americas, Dutch traders planted vineyards in South Africa and British colonists brought vines to Australia and New Zealand. —Dave McIntyre, Washington Post, 2 Mar. 2023

Virtually all of our vineyards are planted with European imports, specifically the grapevine species Vitis vinifera. —Esther Mobley, San Francisco Chronicle, 19 May 2021

The history of vinifera in California is inextricable from the history of colonization. —Esther Mobley, San Francisco Chronicle, 19 May 2021

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Latin vinifer wine-producing, from vinum wine

First Known Use

1888, in the meaning defined above