From lab to vineyard to tasting room – the journey of a new raisin cultivar is no small feat. Culdevco, together with ARC and leading producers, is now one step closer to commercializing G4-4040, a standout performer in recent trials.
Recently, five raisin samples amongst the most promising ARC-bred cultivars were included in one of our tasting sessions. This included G4-4040, a Culdevco selection.
G4-4040 being scored at a Culdevco Tasting Event
The motivation behind including these cultivars in the tasting was to showcase producers what new selections will be available for planting soon.
Each sample was rated for size, colour, sweet/acidity balance and eating quality as part of a broader assessment.
Tasting Scores for G4-4040:
• Sulphur-treated: 6.75
• Sun-dried: 7.00
Scenery taken at the VAMF in Kakamas. Last photo features from left to right: Dr Trevor Koopman (ARC Infruitec-Nietvoorbij), Llewellyn Adams (Producer), Dr Andries Daniels (VAMF) and Mishkaat Anderson (Culdevco).
Beyond the tasting, this cultivar has already shown strong results in:
- Choice grade scores above 94%
- Yields exceeding 50 tons/ha
- Seedlessness across three seasons
- Resistance traits and vine vigor evaluations
G4-4040 is a white grape with a wonderful muscat flavour which keeps its flavour in the drying process.
The ARC will be applying for Plant Breeders’ Rights for G4-4040 in the coming months. This is a major step towards commercialization.
Culdevco acknowledges the hard work from the ARC with Dr Trevor Koopman as Project Leader, producers and the Vine Academy and Model Farm who made evaluation sites available and assists with the management of these sites.
- Basie O’Ryan, Eksteenkuil, Keimoes: Planted on rootstock 143B.
- Llewellyn Adams, Eksteenkuil, Keimoes: Planted on rootstock PS 1103.
- Gerrit Coetzee, Eksteenkuil, Keimoes: G4-4040 is planted in the GC plot on rootstocks US 8-7, Ramsey, RU 140, and PS 1103
Culdevco remains committed to the effective evaluation of raisin grape cultivars through more frequent visits to trial plots and proactive engagement in communication efforts that support collaboration among the ARC team, Raisins SA, producers, and other stakeholders.