Stark-Star
Stark-Star
Seedling of Catawba, J. Bachman 1892
Stark-Star certainly stands out as a champion cultivar. Outstanding beauty in each, hefty cluster. Stark Brothers nursery in Louisiana, MO purchased the rights to the vine and renamed it Stark-Star. It became the foundation of the Missouri port industry.
Vine Characteristics
Hot pink shoots and deep green leaves.
Vines are very fruitful with two or three clusters per shoot, located within the first five nodes.
The canopy is not overly vigorous which always allows for efficient harvesting.
This is highly manageable and resistant to pests and fungus, making it a favorite grape among our viniculturalists.
Extremely productive, but difficult to propagate–it took some 12 years for us to establish our first row.
Winemaker’s Notes
We use distilled grape-based spirit for fortification, arresting the fermentation naturally, leaving residual sweetness.
This produces an intense and perfumed ‘port’, which has aromas of stewed apple and Anjou pear, coupled with amaretto cherries and the lift of orange curacao.
