Say No to Fungi

Let me rephrase that. Say no to the fungi that come along with hot and humid East Coast summers and cause some big headaches in wine grape production. In this part of the country, folks who try to grow grapes like they do in California soon become very acquainted with fungal problems such as phomopsis, black rot, powdery mildew, and downy mildew to name a few.

When Europeans first settled North America they encountered native grapes, which were very hardy and the settlers assumed that European grape varieties (vitis vinifera) would also fare well in eastern North America. While most folks would agree that these European varieties as a group were much more suited to producing high quality wines, folks were pretty quick to notice that these varieties were not suited to withstand the cold winters and hot humid summers we face here in on the East Coast of North America. The early plantings of vitis vinifera planted in the eastern US quickly fell victim to all sorts of diseases caused by fungi native to the area, which thrive in hot humid climates.

The conundrum was that while native American grapes thrived in these conditions, they tasted more akin to kerosene than wine grapes. So, in comes hybrids. No, I'm not talking about Toyota and Honda cars. There is a different type of hybrid that could power up the wine industry, especially in the eastern United States. In the botanical world, a hybrid is any cross between two species of plant. Hybrids can happen naturally, if two plants cross-pollinate and the resulting offspring is found and cultivated. However, most hybrids in the wine world happen after experimentation. Vine experts try to combine the great flavor of one grape with the heartiness of another, and find a vine that will grow where grapes normally might not flourish.

Below is an excerpt from wineintro.com, which does a pretty good job of describing American and French hybrids.

American Hybrids

American hybrids were developed mostly during the 19th century, mixing the native American grapes with the more flavorful French and Italian grape varieties. Most native American grapes are found by winemakers to not make palatable wines. The two key exceptions are the Concord and Scuppernong grapes. Still, winemakers tried, and also tried planting imported grapevines to see if they would grow.

While the imported vines rarely survived more than a year, they did hang around long enough to cause some interaction with the native grapevines. The Alexander grape was a product of accidental cross-pollination discovered in Virginia. Other hybrids which happily sprang into being naturally after this were the Catawba, Delaware, and Isabella. Once scientists realized what was going on, they began purposefully developing hybrids. These included the Niagara and Diamond.

French Hybrids

The French and Europeans looked down on hybrids as being naturally inferior to their centuries-old grape varieties. However, when the phylloxera louse began devastating their vineyards in the late 19th century, they began to try just about anything in order to save their vineyards. Creating pest-resistant hybrids was one path they took.

The hybrids are generally more hearty, and also produce more fruit than native European grapevines. Even so, many French laws forbid their use in classic wines for reasons of tradition. Newer wine regions, not operating under such restrictions, use the French hybrids freely because of their fine flavors and easy growing conditions. French hybrids are often named after their creators, such as Francois Baco and Jean-Louis Vidal. Some well known French hybrids are Seyval Blanc, Vidal Blanc, and Baco Noir.

So, it's a Hybrid...

Does it really matter if a grape is a hybrid or not? Not to the average wine drinker. The hybrids ensure that wine regions that might normally not be able to grow grapes can now create delicious wines. Traditional areas will continue to make wines with traditional grapes, and new wineries can experiment with vines that grow well in their non-ideal climates. Try some, and see what you think!

In an attempt to avoid the viticultural practices required to grow vitis vinifera here in central Virginia, I'm putting most of my resources towards growing hybrid grapes. I do have a few vitis vinifera vines (a couple of rows) which are varieties that appear to be somewhat well suited to Virginia's climate and soils. I have a small sampling of Petit Verdot, Petit Manseng, and Viognier vines in my vitis vinifera rows. The vast majority of my vines are Chambourcin, a new and yet un-named variety called NY 76.0844.24 from Cornell, and a mix of some other hybrids from Cliff Ambers over at Chateau-Z.

We still have to use a limited regimen of fungicide sprays in the vineyard to keep fungal problems in check; however, our spray schedule consists of 4-6 sprays per year versus 15-20 sprays per year in vitis vinifera vineyards in Virginia. I started my spray schedule this week. We've had some great warm weather over the last week to ten days and the vines are really starting to shoot up. We are expecting chances of rain tonight and over the weekend and these wet and warm conditions will be a great chance for phomopsis to get started. So, on Wednesday (4/29) I sprayed both vineyards with Manzate at a rate of 4 pounds per acre using the Friuli sprayer (on the Massey Ferguson 255) at the Naked Creek Vineyard and the backpack sprayer at the Spring Mill Farm Vineyard. I would have used the Friuli sprayer for both vineyards; however, I managed to trash a universal joint on the pto shaft of the sprayer as I was finishing the Naked Creek Vineyard. I'll have to get this fixed in the next couple weeks! I'll do my part to stimulate the economy over at Phillips Equipment.

I'm not going to get on here and say folks shouldn't grow vinifera grapes here in the East. I'm a big fan of diversity. Some great wines made in Virginia are made from vinifera grapes. Jim Law for instance, the owner and winemaker at Linden Vineyards makes some of my favorite wines from vinifera that he tends with such astounding skill. If you've never tried his wines, you don't know what you are missing. He teaches some wine making classes and I hope to be able to get in one this year. I just feel that hybrid grapes, particularly french hybrids fit what I'm trying to do here. Another exciting avenue we're heading down with hybrids is planting some vines and seed, which has been hybridized by Cliff Ambers over at Chateau-Z. These vines are hybrids of excellent wine grapes and native Virginia grapes. This year we've planted some vines from his 2005 crosses. It's going to be nerve wrecking to have to wait several years to taste the fruits of his labor. Maybe we can talk him out of a few clusters from his vineyard this year.

Check out the pics below for a vine update.

Chambourcin vines at the Naked Creek Vineyard on 4/29/09

NY 76.0844.24 vines taking off at SMF on 5/1/09





the strawberry and lettuce plants are doing great in a raised bed