Template:Use mdy dates Template:Short description Template:Infobox grape variety Norton is grown in the Midwestern United States, the Mid-Atlantic States, and northeastern Georgia. Nuclear and chloroplast DNA data are consistent with 'Norton' being a complex hybrid with ancestry from V. aestivalis, V. vinifera, and V. labrusca.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Norton was first cultivated in Richmond, Virginia, and is the official grape of the State of Missouri, and is considered the cornerstone of the Missouri wine industry.<ref name=gans/><ref>A. Garfunkel "Norton: Missouri's State Grape Harbors Juicy Little Secrets" Sauce Magazine May 31, 2004</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Daniel Norton first purveyed the Norton cultivar during the early 19th century from his vineyards in Virginia, USA.<ref name="gans">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
HistoryEdit
The Norton cultivar was introduced by Daniel Norborne Norton of Richmond, Virginia, who selected it from among what he believed were seedlings of a long-forgotten grape variety called Bland, though there is some doubt as to whether it was the actual source of the seed which yielded Norton. The male parent, presumably, was a wild vine of Vitis aestivalis.<ref name=gans/><ref name="Ambers">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Norton">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Another cultivar, called Cynthiana, closely resembles Norton, but has traditionally been considered a separate variety. Genetic studies, however, have shown the two to be indistinguishable.<ref name="Hammers">Template:Cite journal</ref>
This grape became available commercially in 1830 and very soon after that came to dominate wine production in the eastern and midwestern states like Missouri and Ohio in the United States.<ref name="Norton"/> Since this grape lacks the distinct, "foxy" flavors that are typical of Native American Vitis labrusca grapes, it is quite suitable for making dry wine. Vineyards were pulled up and Concord grapes were planted in their place, for juice and jam. After prohibition, the wine industry in the eastern half of North America never recovered to the same degree that California's wine industry did.
In the 21st century, United States wineries along the east coast and throughout the Midwest are re-cultivating and producing wines from Norton grapes, such as at Chrysalis Vineyards in Middleburg, Virginia, which has Template:Convert of Norton grapes.<ref name=gans/>
Anthocyanin contentEdit
Notable for deep blue-purple pigmentation, the skin of Norton grapes has a higher content of total anthocyanins (888 mg per 100 g) than other purple grape cultivars, Concord or Marechal Foch grapes.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Anthocyanins are the largest group of water-soluble pigments in the plant kingdom and belong to the family of compounds known as polyphenols. Major sources of anthocyanins are blueberries, cherries, raspberries, strawberries, blackcurrants, purple grapes, and red wine. Anthocyanins are under basic research to understand if they have any biological role in humans.<ref name="lpi">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>