Black Hamburg

Winegrowers Supplies - Vine variety information

Black Hamburg (Trollinger, Frankenthal etc, see full list below)

Mother: unknown
Father: unknown

Year of breeding: it is a very old variety.
Country of origin: known worldwide as a 'table grape' under the name Black Hamburg, the name Trollinger is probably derived from 'Tirolinger', being the South Tyrolean variety Vernatsch.
It was brought by the Romans to the Rhine from where it also circulated to the Neckar valley. The main cultivation areas today are in South Tyrol (northern Italy), and Württemberg in Germany, where it is the most cultivated grape variety. Small but increasing plantings are located in the adjacent Kraichgau wine region of Baden.

photo by Julius Kühn-Institut (JKI), Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants, Institute for Grapevine Breeding Geilweilerhof - 76833 Siebeldingen, Germany.

Area planted in Germany in 2007: 2504 hectares (2.5% of the total German vine area.) of which 2469 hectares were in Württemberg.
Area planted in Italy in the 1990s: 3415 hectares, in the Sud-Tyrol provinces of Bergamo, Bolzano, Trento and Verona.
In the 18th Century the variety came through the port of Hamburg to England. It was grown under glass and marketed as a table grape. Later it was cultivated in the greenhouses of the Cumberland lodge in Windsor Park, and at Hampton Court Palace and Sillwood Park.

Wine Character - colour: ruby red
                      - bouquet: light, fragrant, special
                      - palate: fresh, juicy, early maturing and do not last.
                        Trollinger wines are mostly blended with Lemberger wines.

Time of bud-burst:

Strength of growth: very vigorous
Growth of side-shoots:

Flowering time:
Flowering strength:

Shoot: open, white wool/hair at the tips and slightly reddish

Leaf: - size: medium, relatively thick       - shape: five-lobed, medium close-set teeth
        - colour: bright green young leaves with bronze-coloured edges, spider-webby hairs
        - surface undulation: blistered, hard
        - petiolar sinus: open, usually lyre-shaped but can be closed or overlapping

Grape bunch: - size: medium                - density: moderately loose
                   - shape: cylindrical
Berries:         - size: large                   - shape: round to slightly oval
                   - skin colour: blue-black; thin skin so not easily transported commercially

Time of veraison:
Time of harvest: very late (about 20 days after Chasselas)

Grape yield: the yields are usually too high, so in order to get good wine quality, it is necessary to use pruning/training methods that will a give a reduction in yield. To further reduce yield "cluster thinning" or "green harvesting" is carried out after flower set.
Must-weight:
Must-acidity:

Wood ripening:
Winter hardiness: thick canes are not very frost resistant
Wood colour:

Chlorosis resistance:
Susceptibility to - Oidium: yes                   - Peronospora: yes
                       - Botrytis:                        - Roter Brenner:
                       - Phomopsis:                    - Stem-atrophy:

Other names by which Trollinger is known in different parts of the world (from Wikipedia):-

Admiral, Aegypter, Ägyptische, Ägyptischer, Aleksandriskii Chernyi, Baccaria, Bacheracher, Bammerer, Barth der Alten, Bilsenroth, Black Gibraltar, Black Hambourg, Black Hamburg, Black Hamburgh, Black Prince, Black Tripoli, Blauer Trollinger, Blauwälsche, Bocksauge, Bocksaugen, Bocksbeutel, Bockshoden, Bockstraube, Braddick's Seedling, Bruxelloise, Chasselas bleu de Windsor, Chasselas de Jérusalem, Chasselas de Windsor, Dachtraube, Dachtrauben, Dutch Hamburgh, Edel Vernatsch, Edelvernatsch, Fleischtraube, Frankentaler, Frankenthal, Frankenthal noir, Frankenthaler, Garston Black Hamburgh, Gelbholziger schwarzblauer Trollinger, Gelbholziger Trollinger, Gros bleu, Gros noir, Gros plant grand noir, Groß Italiener, Groß Vernatsch, Grosse race, Großer Burgunder, Großroth, Großschwarzer, Großvernatsch, Hammelshoden, Hammelsschelle, Hammelssohlen, Hampton Court Vine, Hudler, Huttler, Imperator, Khei-Khan, Knevet's Black Hamburgh, Kölner Blau, Kreuzertraube, Lambert, Lamper, Languedoc, Lombard, Lugiana near, Maltheser Roth, Malvasier, Malvoisier, Maroquin d'Espagne, Meraner Kurtraube, Ministra, Modri Tirolan, Mohrendutte, Mohrentutte, Morrokin Barbaron, Nougaret grosse race, Pfundtraube, Plant de Paris, Pommerer, Pope Hamburgh, Prince Albert, Purple Hamburgh, Queen Victoria, Raisin bleu, Raisin bleu de Frankental, Raisin de Languedoc, Red Hamburgh, Rheinwein blau, Richmond Villa Hamburgh, Rothelbner, Salisbury violette, Schiavone, Schiavone di Merano nero, Schliege, Schwarzblauer, Schwarzblauer Trollinger, Schwarzer, Schwarzer Wälscher, Schwarzwälscher, Spanisch Blau, Straihntraube, Südtiroler Kurtrauben, Teplichnyi chernyi, Tirolan crni, Tirolinger, Trolinger, Troller, Trollinger blau, Trollinger gelbholzig, Trollinger weissholzig, Trollingi kék, Tschaggele, Uva Cenerente (irrtümlich), Uva meranese, Uva near d'Amburgo, Valentines, Vernatsch, Victoria, Victoria Hamburgh, Wälscher, Warner's Hamburgh, Weissholziger Trollinger, Welke Burgundske, Welko modre, Zottelwälscher und Zottler.

Cross-breeding with Trollinger:-

Thought to be a parent of Muscat de Hambourg, which matures later and is prone to unreliable yields; it has a delicate nutmeg flavour and produces excellent wines in good years.

The vine breeder August Herold used Trollinger in crossing Kerner and Helfensteiner.
At Geisenheim it has been used in breeding Rotberger and Witberger.
The variety Palas was presented at Weinsberg, in 1969.