Cardinal
Cardinal is a dark-skinned table grape first developed in California in 1939 and widely grown for fresh eating and for raisins. Although it was bred for the table, it is also used extensively to make wine in Thailand and Vietnam, a case of a fruit variety adapted to winemaking in warm climates.
History
The variety was first produced in California in 1939. It is a dark-skinned table grape first developed in that year.
The parentage of the grape is described differently in the sources. One account presents it as a cross between the flame seedless table grape (also known as flame tokay) and ribier. A more recent account, according to the latest research, links it to a cross between Königin der Weingärten and Alphonse Lavallée. The two genealogies do not agree, and it is not clear which one is correct, so they are best treated as working hypotheses until more detailed evidence appears.
Its spread came mainly as a table grape, eaten fresh or dried into raisins. It is grown for these purposes in the United States, Bulgaria, France, Italy and Romania, and the sources also list North Macedonia, Croatia, Spain and Portugal as countries where it is used in the same way. In Spain, the Ministry order APA/1819/2007, dated 13 June, recognises it as a recommended table grape, without including it among the varieties intended for raisin production.
Its role in winemaking is more recent and less widespread than its role at the table. In Thailand and Vietnam it is widely used to produce wine, and the sources note that it is the main parent of Blanc du Bois, a subtropical wine grape. Its cultivation reached the Philippines in the 1970s and is now concentrated mainly in the Ilocos region.
Culture
At the table, Cardinal is eaten as fresh fruit and, in several countries, as raw material for raisins. The sources do not describe celebrations, rituals or customs linked to it.
The difference in use from one country to another is the most notable part of its cultural profile. In the United States and several European countries it is valued for the table and for drying, while in Thailand and Vietnam its importance is tied to local wine production. In the Philippines, its cultivation is associated with the Ilocos region.
In Spain, its official recommendation as a table grape places it in that same direct-consumption role, without making it one of the varieties used for raisins.