A vineyard (/ˈvɪn.jərd/; also UK: /ˈvɪn.jɑːrd/) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards are often characterised by their terroir, a French term loosely translating as “a sense of place” that refers to the specific geographical and geological characteristics of grapevine plantations, which may be imparted to the wine itself.

The earliest evidence of wine production dates from between 6000 and 5000 BC.[1] Wine making technology improved considerably with the ancient Greeks but it wasn’t until the end of the Roman Empire that cultivation techniques as we know them were common throughout Europe.[2]