Farm at Owen Roe Winery- March 04

What do winemakers and vineyard managers talk about when they get together? Chances are, the topic over a beer at Lumpy's (a tavern in Dundee frequented by lots of wine people) will be the weather.

There is no shortage of opinions- (seems like there's one for every person involved in the wine industry) - about the weather and its effects on the vintage. In an area of the world where every vintage has the chance of being ruined by rain, and where the vagarities of the weather can change a vintage from stellar to problematic in the course of week of rain or heat, the weather is disected, diced, graphed, and sworn at depending on the situation.

Has the climate changed in Oregon? Is it global warming? Or are we just in a cycle of warmer years like those seen back in the 20th century? How do you protect grapes from heat? Is harvest going t o be earlier in the fall? How does the winemaker react to weather changes- heat spikes and earlier spring warmth and more dry hot weather?

One Opinion- It's Getting Warmer

Oregon's Willamette Valley has historically been a very wet place to live, with weeks of non-stop rain in the winter and summers of rainy picnics, with the Fourth of July traditionally celebrated indoors, watching the rain rather than fireworks. But over the last ten years, rather than cold wet summers, Oregonians have experienced more hotter, dryer ones. Or at least that's the perception.

Oregon weather has contributed to a string of great vintages since 1998. Where a good harvest used to be defined as "the grapes ripened", extra sunshine and heat of the last few vintages produced very high quality grapes harvested almost at leisure, without the pressure of cool, rainy weather potentially ruining the harvest.

2004 may be another in a string of warmer years. On Easter Sunday, April 11, 2004 the weather was sunny and gorgeous, with the temperature reaching a record high of 81° F in the Willamette Valley. The highest temperature ever recorded for the Willamette Valley on that day, it typifies the unseasonally warm and dry weather that Oregon wine country has experienced since early March 2004. After a very wet winter, complete with major ice and snow storms, Oregon's temperate rain forest, the Willamette Valley, is feeling more like California.

According to Jim Bernau, Founder and President of Willamette Valley Vineyards, (pictured at right) this unusually warm spring is just the latest in a series of weather changes that have re-written the rules for Oregon winemaking.

"In the next ten years, I wouldn't be surprised if you see Willamette Valley wineries planting and successfully harvesting varieties of grapes that we could never ripen when I started growing grapes 22 years ago" he said.

Bernau founded Willamette Valley Vineyards 22 years ago, clearing the ground and planting wine grapes, and he started a weather journal that shows him the changes in the weather over the years.

"The last six vintages in Oregon have been a solid string of the best ever, all for different reasons, related to the changing weather." he states.

""Where grape growing issues ten years ago centered on getting grapes to ripen, and avoiding mold from cool wet days during harvest, now the issues are water availability for irrigating, and protecting grapes from "sunstroke", a condition where over exposure to the sun makes the grape stop maturing and it stays small and green in the cluster. "

He saw "bud break" - the moment when the leaf first shows through the brown bud on the grape vine- about ten days early this spring, and sees vines pushing leaves out already. While a late spring frost could damage the crop, barring that, the early start could mean an early harvest. And every day counts at harvest, where ten days can mean the difference between sunny, dry days, and the onset of Oregon's cold, wet winter weather.

Managing Vineyards for Weather

Oregon's wine industry is only about 40 years old, with some exceptions. There was a lot to learn about growing wine grapes in this marginal region, and slow, painful experimentation has resulted in many improvements and changes that have improved grape flavor and quality.

Many of the methods used to adapt to the weather in Oregon are based on the assumption that there will not be enough heat and sunshine, and that everything that can be done to ripen the grapes must be done. More recently, methods to protect grapes from the sun and drought have become important to consider. The table below shows six aspects of grape growing and the ways that the winemaker adapts viticultural practices to the weather conditions.

Irrigation- A Big Topic at Lumpy's

Perhaps few aspects of grape growing provoke more vigorously held opinions than the use of drip irrigation on wine grapes. Michael Etzel, winemaker and co-owner of Beaux Freres, says that irrigation is fine for inexpensive wines made by companies with big vineyards.

But, says Michael, "the glories and greats are not irrigated. How many 95 point Pinot noirs are irrigated? Not many, if any. If you want the essence of the site and a reflection in the wine of the growing year's characteristics, you cannot irrigate. Drip irrigation is like McDonalds- predictable, with no surprises. Dry farmed grapes reflect the authenticity of the site and the vintage. There is more variability between vintages, but to the serious wine collector, this authenticity is vital."

Gary Andrus, founder and former winemaker for Archery Summit, and currently owner and winemaker at Gypsy Dancer, commented from New Zealand, where he is in the middle of harvest at his winery there.

"When you are planting in the densities that I started here in New Zealand- (meter by meter or meter by 1.4 meters), irrigation is needed until the first crop. The competition between vines planted at such high density for water and nutrients, naturally devigours the plants. This is a good thing because it makes the berries smaller and the flavors more intense.

However, irrigation is needed for more that the first year because of the vine competition. This competition between plants also increases during on-going heat spikes and results in a need for supplemental water. And, regarding heat spikes, the ability to level the growing period by applying water when the temperatures exceed 92 degrees is crucial to the proper ripening of the vine. When the temperature exceeds 92 to 93 degrees for several days, the plants start to shut down and the carbohydrates start to return to the roots.

This is sort of like a plant thinking it is going to die and needs to protect itself for the future by shutting down. I. E. wilting, yellowing of leaves, just like in house
plants you do not water. The problem is that if they need to wait for the crucial rain in say, August, and the plants have to wait for three to four weeks, the plant shuts down. Then it rains and the plants say, finally, lets grow again. Well, the chemical that starts the plant growing is ethylene and catalyst in plants. (This is also the chemical gas that is used to ripen fruits and vegetables such as bananas and apples and peaches apricots, avocado's and the like in the warehouses of the major World wide Ag companies like Dole and Chiquita Bananas.

So what is the problem? Well the chemical which comes up the plant from the roots makes the fruit taste like green beans or white pepper. So if you can't irrigate when needed and then harvest with in two weeks the pinot will taste like canned green beans, very vegetal. Further, if the plants shuts down, then the phenolic development is impeded in the skins and stems just like with sun burn. So you get immature skins where the flavors and tannins come from, but high sugar.

About Jean Yates

Jean Yates is owner of Avalon Wine, and has worked to promote Orregon and Washington wine for over 15 years through her wine shop, web site, and articles.

Jean previously worked in the computer industry and does most of the work on the Avalon website. She is a passionate photographer and most of the images on this site are hers

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