Moon Drops Grapes

    Grape - Moon Drops fruit                 

    Moon Drops Grapes – vitis vinifera 

    Moon Drop is the proprietary name given to these uniquely shaped grapes developed by The Grapery in Bakersfield, CA. They are a seedless black grape of the botanical classification vitis vinifera that offer an excellent crunch and intensely sweet grapey flavour.

    Moon Drop grapes are medium to large in size and are extremely elongated, oblong, or tubular in shape, growing in tight clusters on fleshy green stems. The smooth, dark sapphire skin appears almost black, has a glossy sheen, and a characteristic dimple on one end. The grapes are so crisp that they can be snapped in two, revealing a translucent green seedless pulp. Moon Drop grapes are sweeter than normal black grape varieties and contain just enough tannins to balance out the juicy sweet flavour.

       Sometimes just called moon grapes, their official name is Moon Drop and it’s trademarked by Grapery, a California-based grower. They come from a version of the common grape vine species that has been selectively bred to produce an intensely sweet and crisp seedless fruit, which grows in a tubular shape.

         Since this is a trademarked name for a patented fruit, one might assume that Moon Drops must be a GMO plant. They’re not. These were created using Dr. David Cain’s selective breeding techniques. Hand pollination of the Beita Mouni and C22-121 grape varieties are what led to the IFG Six, more commonly known as moon grapes.  Dr. David Cain, a plant breeder and scientist who works for the grape-growing company Grapery, develops new types. He has been working on the Moon Drop for about 15 years, cultivating the plant from a Middle Eastern sample. No, it’s not a GMO fruit; Cain practices old-school plant breeding, which is why it took so long to develop this novelty.

      The growing season for Moon Drops is extremely short. They’re only sold at stores from August 20th to September 15th. That’s less than one month out of the year you can eat them. Moon Drop grapes taste like a regular black seedless, only better. The flavour is sweeter and the texture is more crisp.

          Moon Drop grapes are best suited for both raw consumption and cooked applications such as roasting or blistering. They are generally eaten out-of-hand as a table grape, but their long tubular shape also allows for more diverse culinary applications.  These grapes are large enough to be split in half and stuffed with a salty cheese to complement their sweet flavour. They are also excellent roasted with salt and lemon or blistered over high heat and paired with sautéed bitter greens or sharp Brussel sprouts. Other complimentary flavours include almonds, walnuts, pistachios, pecans, hazelnuts, pork, poultry, duck, rosemary, fennel, fennel seed, mint, endive, yogurt, blue cheese, and goat cheese. Moon Drop grapes will keep up to one week when stored in the refrigerator. They can also be frozen for extended use and flavour will not be lost.

        Moon Drops get their special shape from the special care and attention from growers. Carefully harvested each fields several different times, selecting only the very best grapes that are fully ripe and at their absolute peak of flavour.

        This uniquely shaped grapes developed by The Grapery in Bakersfield, CA. After years of selective breeding and experimentation, The Grapery company has created a reputation for releasing one of a kind grapes without the use of additives or GMO’s. In the fall, Moon Drop grapes are covered with plastic to protect the fruit from rain which could potentially dilute natural sugars. This allows the grapes to develop a sweet, concentrated flavour that is ideal for snacks and eating raw out-of-hand.

         These grapes are only available for about a month and are in high demand because of their limited availability. These grapes are not available in cuttings for home gardens and are actually patented until 2031 to protect other growers from reproducing the variety. To help meet demand, Moon Drop grapes keep well so consumers can purchase in bulk and store in their freezer for use during the winter months.  The grapes are grown in the San Joaquin Valley in California and can be found at local supermarkets in the majority of the United States.  

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