Generality

The European grapevine (Vitis vinifera sativa) belongs to the genus Vitis, Vitaceae family, which is divided into two sub-genres: Muscadinia (including the species Vitis rotundifolia, Vitis Vitis munsoniana and popenoei) and Euvitis, to which belong the American vines (Vitis riparia , Vitis rupestris, Vitis berlandieri and Vitis champini) that are used as rootstocks, screws East Asian and Eurasian, including Vitis vinifera.
The Vitis vinifera is the species by far the most important for the quality of its fruits, which also has two subspecies V. vinifera silvestris (wild in Europe for thousands of years)
and V. vinifera sativa, most widely cultivated species of vine in the world.
The origin of life is much more ancient than that of the spread of viticulture. The history of the plant has more than 100 million years and evolved in the form of many species most of which did not survive the prehistoric ages.
With the choice, or the selection of varieties, originated viticulture which has about 10000 years of history. It begins after the last glaciation (Wurm Glaciation) and spreads in the so-called Fertile Crescent (including the area from the Caucasus to Egypt), and then to the Mediterranean and Northern Europe.
The screw, along with barley, wheat, millet, flax and cotton is one of the species grown for the first
ancient civilizations and, later, Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians and Egyptians. The use of the vine over time has evolved from edible berry product to make wine fortifying with accessories for vineyard employees.
In Italy, the spread of the vine has taken place in the south and in the islands by the Greeks and in the center-north by the Etruscans.
The big trips that characterized the late fifteenth and early sixteenth century allowed the spread of the plant material to and from the Americas, and later the onset of dangerous pests (phylloxera, powdery mildew, downy mildew) in Europe; trips over ocean also allowed to colonize with the screw even other continents.
Today, the main producer of wine grapes are Italy, France, Spain, Germany and Greece, and the table grapes are grown in Italy, Russia, Turkey, Greece, Spain and Bulgaria. Thanks to the constant increase of accessories for vineyards were reduced the time dedicated to the plants.