texture that the wines can get after some aging. As one of the few heat-loving white grapes, Verdelho is well adapted to the California Sierra foothills. By the 1870s the grape was extensively grown in what is now Amador County. Currently Verdelho is grown in Amador and Solano counties, near Lodi, as well as one vineyard in Napa Valley. Approximately 200 acres in California are devoted to the grape. California Verdelho wines are noted for floral and citrus aromas. Viticulture Verdelho is a moderately vigorous vine that produces small bunches of small oval berries with a high skin to juice ratio. The skins of the berry can be thick and taste "hard" when eaten. The grapes ripen early but can be prone to powdery mildew. The vines can also be susceptible to frost during the spring. Confusion with other grapes Verdelho is often confused with Verdelho Tinto, a red grape also grown in Madeira. The grapes are related but still different, similar to how Pinot noir and Pinot gris are related (as crosses which exhibit new characteristics and become a new varietal and the originating grapes trackable in DNA as the "parents"). Verdelho is also confused with the similarly named Verdelho Feijão and the Gouveio of Portugal, the Italian grape Verduzzo and the Verdejo white grape grown in Spain. See also List of Port wine grapes List of Portuguese grape varieties References White wine grape varieties Madeira wine Flora of Madeira