A new international genetic research, the largest of its kind to date, sheds more light on the origin of vines and, by extension, wine. The analysis concluded that the domestication and cultivation of the grape began 11,000 to 11,500 years ago, about 4,000 years later than earlier estimates, in two different places, in Western Asia (Near East) and the South Caucasus, which were between the more than 1,000 kilometers. In the Balkans, it is estimated that wine viticulture appeared about 8,700 years ago, in conjunction with the migration of Anatolian farmers to the West.

The researchers, led by Professor Yang Dong of of China Yunnan Agricultural Universitywho published in the journal Science, performed genetic analysis on more than 3,000 grapevine samples from 16 countries, including plants in private collections that had never been studied before, as well as sites with wild vines. (Vitis sylvestris), in addition to various grape crops (Vitis vinifera).

Where, when and how the cultivation of the vine began is a problem that has concerned scientists for years. Although grapes and wines are very important from a cultural point of view, their history has a rather nebulous beginning. Various hypotheses have been proposed, but are difficult to confirm.

Until now, not enough grape varieties had been genetically analysed, something the new research was able to do for the first time, so it is thought to give a more reliable picture. A previously prevailing view was that vines were domesticated before the advent of agriculture in a single location in Western Asia and from there spread everywhere.

But the new study shows how there was a parallel dual origin of the cultivated grapevine, with a parallel cradle in the South Caucasus, and in both places domestication took place later, alongside the emergence of agriculture and almost simultaneously with the start of cereal cultivation. The domestication and cultivation of vines in the South Caucasus had a limited spread and relatively little downstream influence, while it was the domestication in the Near East that eventually dominated internationally.

Also, while, based on the hitherto dominant theory, wine grapes began to be cultivated before table grapes (as fruit), the new research concluded that both began to be cultivated in parallel. Compared to table grapes, wine grapes are generally smaller, thicker skinned and less sugary, having characteristics more similar to those of wild vines.

The study also found that the origin of wine in Europe is related to the crossing between wild Western European vines and domesticated Near Eastern vines that were originally used as a food source. In contrast to cereals, there were populations of wild vines in Europe, which then “married” with imported domesticated vines.

In addition, the researchers identified some genes that improve the taste, color and texture of grapes and which could help today’s winemakers create varieties that are more resistant to climate change and more generally to environmental stress and plant diseases.