The heat wave recently affecting the West Coast gave some wine grape growers reason for concern. Worries about the impact of the high heat on the development of grapes as well as on vineyard workers have been the topic of discussion lately.
Grape development is arrested in times of high heat – particularly when temperatures exceed 100 degrees Fahrenheit and the vines do not have the chance to cool off at night. This may result in smaller fruit and a reduced yield. When a heat wave hits after the grapes have began to ripen, the result may be shriveled, raisiny fruit. However, it appears that the wine growing regions in most of the central coast have been able to evade the damaging effects of the heat – a testimonial to the uniqueness of the region's geography as much as to serendipitous timing. There is also some variation to how the heat has affected different AVAs.
While the central valley is seeing the most impact of the soaring temperatures, the east-west valleys of the central coast are channeling cooling ocean air to the vineyards. This tends to be more significant in the western portions of the valleys where the marine effect is most profound. Norman J. Beko, Proprietor and Winemaker at Cottonwood Canyon Winery in Santa Maria told us: “It is treating us pretty well. We have had to water more and we are probably going to get a better crop than we first estimated, and sooner. But it looks terrific. The heat has arrested the botrytis which is also good. Currently, temperatures are in the 75 to 85 degree range with a nice dry wind.”
The typically warmer growing regions are seeing more effects of the heat wave. Chris Stanton, winemaker at Koehler Winery in the Santa Ynez Valley says: “The heat just pushed the vines a little farther along. We normally have veraison now, and we are a few weeks behind on that. So the heat just spurred it along. We are looking at harvest starting around Sept 15th.”
On the other side of the same coin, cooler growing regions are affected by heat waves to a lesser degree. Mark Pisoni of Pisoni Vineyards in Monterey's Santa Lucia Highlands explains this: "We typically have three or four heat waves in a typical summer and temperatures hit around 90 or 92 degrees Fahrenheit. This year, we saw 100 degrees for a few days. We had to increase irrigation and leave some leaves on the canopy." As a result, their grapes, which are just at the beginning of veraison, were "a bit stunted, but not to a degree to significantly affect yield". The timing of the heat wave is essential. If a hot spell comes early in the growing season, the vines can recover much easier. It's another thing if the grapes are nearly ripe: "Then you lose acids and pH becomes a problem, the grapes get overripe and the wine will be raisiny" he continues. Harvest will come a week or two later in the Santa Lucia Highlands: mid to late September.
Paso Robles, which is typically a warmer AVA, has experienced some development shut down. Tom Maas, owner of Pear Valley Vineyards in western Paso Robles, said temperatures reached 114 degrees Fahrenheit. “We’ve had some shut down and we’re looking at harvest coming some 2 to 4 weeks later”. Having discussed the situation with his vineyard manager, he does not foresee a yield reduction.
At the time of this article’s publication, temperatures are decreasing and there is a break in sight. Bill Wathen, winemaker at Foxen Winery feels the situation still looks good for yield and quality in the 2006 vintage: "The heat wave was harder on the vineyard workers than it was on the vines, since the workers are doing so much canopy and cluster work this time of year." Of course, no one can predict what will happen between now and harvest and all projections of yield and quality are, ultimately, speculation. "We hope that this heat cycle is done now, so we don’t have the high temperatures in September", Billy continues. "From things I see now, it looks like the Santa Rita and Santa Maria Pinot Noir harvest will begin in the third week of September, with is one to two weeks later than average.
This year has seen some challenging weather for some growers. Budbreak came late for some in Santa Barbara County due to cold temperatures from March to May. The greater than average rainfall reported in the central valleys during spring also delayed budbreak. The heat wave definitely put some stress on the State’s wine growers (and vineyard workers). Fortunately, the Central Coast appears to not have been significantly affected by the heat to the same degree as the Central Valley. This is a testament to the success and merits of the Central Coast as a wine growing region.
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