Scholasch spoke to how important it is to manage irrigation in a way that allows the vines to thrive with the right amount of water. Our focus was on dry climates, but how do winemakers manage for too much water? It turns out irrigation systems help wine makers to stabilize the environment, whether there is too much OR too little rain. When there is too much rain, wine makers work to divert water flow into retaining ponds.
These irrigation systems are not standard throughout wine making, however. As we learned, many old world wine makers do not use irrigation systems for their vines. They rely on the environment and the terroir to add complexities and character to their grapes. Thus, in old world regions, when there is too much rain, the grapes do not have as much flavor and those vintages may be less desirable. On the flip side, in new world regions, irrigation allows wine makers to mitigate the impact of weather and stabilize the quality of their vintages.
An Eater article highlights some of the tensions between these two methods by covering El Niño's influence on Napa. It is clear from the interviews in the article that opinions vary on the "right" way to bring out terroir in wines and how weather should impact technique. Outside of the extreme opinions, I am interested to hear from more advanced wine drinkers a few things:
- Does irrigation technique matter to you when selecting a wine?
- Do you believe old world processes make a wine more authentic?
- Is the draw of U.S. wines the expectation of a more consistent product regardless of vintage?
Here is a link to the article in full: http://www.eater.com/2016/1/6/10718654/el-nino-california-wine
Thanks, Tori - this is particularly timely with recent weather! Recalling the conclusions from our class module with Pete Mondavi on the unsuitability of vineyards for public equity markets, I'm sure this is precisely the type of natural phenomenon whose implications the CEO/CFO of a publicly-traded vineyard would dread having to announce and explain on a quarterly-earnings call...
ReplyDeleteAside from managing the volume / physical flow of the rainfall, I wonder if the resulting run-off / drainage plays a role in carrying or redistributing soil nutrients throughout winemaking geographies...
Yes, Tori, thanks so much for the post. One of the questions that comes up for me with this is: how much does irrigation actually change the outcome? Whether wineries irrigate or not in the case of too much rain, I have found (based on anecdotal experience) that a direct year-to-year comparison of the same grapes from the same vineyards results in a very different product in years of heavier rain - generally speaking, these vintages are milder or more delicate, and are not as fruit forward. Some of these wines are not great (i.e. too dilute), while others (depending on personal taste) may be preferred by some wine drinkers. Additionally, there are very specific times when rain matter - spring and harvest time in particular. But at the end of the day, the effects of climate on grapes - and on the wines produced - is quite complex. I remember a winemaker in Chianti telling me one time, "The Californians have it so easy when it comes to wine growing - they have the perfect climate!" I wonder if he would agree now.
ReplyDeleteSome of the recent articles I have read regarding Napa have to do with the hot summers, and how that has affected wine growing. Rising temperatures have also affected Oregon. It will be interesting to see what this growing season brings.