Region's wine grape growers are whacked by wet weather
By Anne Gonzales
The Sacramento Bee
Published: Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2011 - 12:00 am | Page 6B
Copyright 2011 . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Local wine grape growers were dealt a double whammy Monday when an unexpected rain doused harvest plans for the second time in days, lowering sugars in fruit and jamming area wineries. If rain continues this week, growers could lose grapes to deterioration in the vineyards.
The unseasonable showers also hurt regional tomato and rice growers.
Grape growers in the foothills and Delta area were hoping for sun and breezes this week to erase the effects of back-to-back, early rains. While much of the fruit for white wines has been picked and sent to the wineries, a rainstorm last Wednesday and Thursday stalled harvest of red varieties, including cabernet sauvignon, syrah and merlot.
The rain also lowered sugar content in grapes in the vineyards, the result of water dilution in fruit. Growers opted to leave fruit on the vines for a few days to build up sugar content, but were taken aback to see raindrops in their vineyards Monday morning.
"This one was a surprise to us," said Greg Boeger, owner of Boeger Winery in Placerville, who was planning to harvest Monday morning.
Jamie Lubenko, executive director of Amador Vintners Association in Plymouth, said foothill growers had harvested about a third of the crop by the first week of October, but wasn't sure how much more had been picked before last week's rain.
Growers typically harvest through October with little or no rain, Lubenko said.
Lubenko said grape growers already were dealing with a delayed harvest because of a cold, wet spring. Now, growers are hurrying to get their product processed, especially those who sell to wineries outside the region.
"When the weather turns like this, growers are going to want to pull in all their fruit at once," Lubenko said. "But the wineries can't take it all at once, so that's a challenge. It often is picked and sits."
Mark Scribner, owner of Scribner Bend Vineyards in Clarksburg, said he hasn't harvested any red grapes. He said during the last rain, sugars in his red varietals dropped.
"It was too low to make quality, so we elected to ride out the last rain and the weather forecasters assured us there wouldn't be rain for another week," he said. "Now we have to wait another few days to allow sugars to work back up."
Monday's rain was accompanied by warm, humid conditions, which could cause fruit to rot on the vine if it stays wet too long, Scribner said.
Tomato growers were scrambling to get the last of the fruit harvested on Monday in the rain, while alfalfa hay growers, already hampered by a short season, were hoping for sunshine and wind to dry out the final cutting, which typically cures in the field until mid-October.
Rice growers in the Sacramento region had to halt harvesting because of muddy conditions, said Jim Morris, a spokesman for the California Rice Commission in Sacramento. If they're able to restart harvest in a day or two, there will be little effect. If rain continues, the cost of production could go up and the volume could be reduced.
Grape growers in the foothills and Delta area were hoping for sun and breezes this week to erase the effects of back-to-back, early rains. While much of the fruit for white wines has been picked and sent to the wineries, a rainstorm last Wednesday and Thursday stalled harvest of red varieties, including cabernet sauvignon, syrah and merlot.
The rain also lowered sugar content in grapes in the vineyards, the result of water dilution in fruit. Growers opted to leave fruit on the vines for a few days to build up sugar content, but were taken aback to see raindrops in their vineyards Monday morning.
"This one was a surprise to us," said Greg Boeger, owner of Boeger Winery in Placerville, who was planning to harvest Monday morning.
Jamie Lubenko, executive director of Amador Vintners Association in Plymouth, said foothill growers had harvested about a third of the crop by the first week of October, but wasn't sure how much more had been picked before last week's rain.
Growers typically harvest through October with little or no rain, Lubenko said.
Lubenko said grape growers already were dealing with a delayed harvest because of a cold, wet spring. Now, growers are hurrying to get their product processed, especially those who sell to wineries outside the region.
"When the weather turns like this, growers are going to want to pull in all their fruit at once," Lubenko said. "But the wineries can't take it all at once, so that's a challenge. It often is picked and sits."
Mark Scribner, owner of Scribner Bend Vineyards in Clarksburg, said he hasn't harvested any red grapes. He said during the last rain, sugars in his red varietals dropped.
"It was too low to make quality, so we elected to ride out the last rain and the weather forecasters assured us there wouldn't be rain for another week," he said. "Now we have to wait another few days to allow sugars to work back up."
Monday's rain was accompanied by warm, humid conditions, which could cause fruit to rot on the vine if it stays wet too long, Scribner said.
Tomato growers were scrambling to get the last of the fruit harvested on Monday in the rain, while alfalfa hay growers, already hampered by a short season, were hoping for sunshine and wind to dry out the final cutting, which typically cures in the field until mid-October.
Rice growers in the Sacramento region had to halt harvesting because of muddy conditions, said Jim Morris, a spokesman for the California Rice Commission in Sacramento. If they're able to restart harvest in a day or two, there will be little effect. If rain continues, the cost of production could go up and the volume could be reduced.
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