Driving through meandering country roads and looking out across bucolic landscapes filled with grape vines, it’s hard to fathom that this may have to change almost as soon as the plants and winemakers alike have established a foothold.
On a hot mid-summer day, as winery after winery sped past the windows of my car, I was reminded that it takes consistent sunshine to bring the fruit on the vines into optimal ripeness before they can be plucked, packed, destemmed, crushed, fermented, bottled, and drunk. All that viticulture involves is varied and changes year upon year. The vintner has to be prepared to call time at the right moment, making the combination of skills, knowledge and sheer good fortune a magical formula that shifts with the seasons.
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The Willamette Valley has a reputation for world-class pinot noir and chardonnay. These days, with lasting changes in weather patterns, grape harvesting sometimes has to happen earlier to help retain freshness and acidity in the grapes. Alternatively, in very wet years, harvest time may move forward a week or more if ripeness is attained and the plant can resist disease infestation.
There is also an increasing push from the public to migrate away from chemical treatments to organic and biodynamic practices which strictly limit or eliminate pesticides and herbicides from the vineyards. As the temperatures and rainfall in the fields change, the pests that invade the land are altering their behavior patterns, too – birds, mildew, wood diseases, and squirrels to name but a few.
The Willamette Valley has a reputation for world-class pinot noir and chardonnay.
I had heard that Oregon’s Willamette Valley is facing new challenges growing pinot noir (which is notoriously finnicky). My visit was with the full intention of asking large and small vineyard owners alike how they were coping with these changes and others that are almost certainly ahead. What, if anything, is an option for both viticulture and viniculture?
There seem to be a number of different approaches to managing inconsistent and inhospitable weather if one is a vineyard owner. The techniques that are most often applied include different grape varieties, altering irrigation practices, replanting on different slope aspects and soils – near or further from rivers, new canopy management strategies, and modifying harvest times. These are not mutually exclusive practices.
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Some of the vineyard owners and operators I spoke with are already employing more than one of these techniques and are considering others. Similarly, winemakers are considering how to craft wines with lower acidity in the grapes with ripeness levels that show increased sugar – therefore having higher potential alcohol in the wine.
Perhaps one of the most notable properties in Dundee is Domaine Drouhin Oregon (DDO) which is owned by the Drouhin family that have vineyards in Burgundy’s Cote d’Or. The family have been vintners for multiple generations, and during my visit to the Dundee, Oregon tasting room in early August, I was able to speak with César Medina Maldonado – one of their Certified Sommeliers.
Domaine Drouhin Oregon (DDO) is owned by the Drouhin family that also have vineyards in Burgundy’s Cote d’Or.
The Drouhin family purchased the hillside land and began constructing the Dundee vineyard property in 1989, more than one hundred years after Maison Joseph Drouhin was established in Beaune in 1880. More recently, in 2013, a property in Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon was obtained by DDO which offers a different terroir and climactic palette and adds still another dimension to the winemaking considerations of the Drouhin family.
César explained that DDO is reconsidering irrigation techniques in vineyards with Jory soils. These soils tend to be drier at their surface, but at depth, between six and nine feet, they retain water. He described it as looking like “brownie batter.” Too much watering means that as the temperature heats up and the water close to the surface evaporates, it can cause the leaves to develop mildew. Similarly, canopy management to allow better airflow and vine spacing are becoming more important.
Testing new clones in vineyard nursery areas is also being implemented. Clones that are drought resistant, and may be a little slower to grow and ripen to match the climate as it changes, will be more suitable. But this takes time and effort. Phillipe Drouhin decided that starting now will help develop both a mid and long-term strategy for the business.
(Courtesy of Willamette Valley Wineries Association)
The temperature and rainfall changes that we are feeling these days are described by the scientific community as attributable to climate change. Over the past several decades these changes have been impacting vineyards with speeds that are unprecedented. Finding ways to mitigate vineyard stresses has been, and continues to be, front and center for the whole Willamette Valley. Some owners have turned to fewer mechanical interventions thereby reducing fossil fuel usage.
One of the more creative ideas in practice at the Maysara winery is the use of wild turkeys to eat pests. This has the added advantage of reducing the need for pesticides. Maysara produces Demeter Certified Biodynamic® wine that is reflected throughout their viticulture and viniculture. This family owned and operated winery has a proud heritage starting in Persia. The eldest daughter of the family was the youngest female winemaker in the US when she began in 2007.
There are over 500 acres of vineyards at Maysara, planted primarily with pinot noir. The predominant change they described is the increased variability in weather patterns. Unseasonably cool summers make later harvesting necessary. Wetter springs mean an increased chance of mildew and rot. The whole operation has to be nimble and flexible.
During my stay, the Willamette Valley Wineries Association was meeting to discuss over dinner – and of course wine, future trends in winegrowing, retail trade and to offer wines for auction. Although I was unable to meet with Ken Wright (despite several attempts), he is legendary in the Valley. He was a major contributor to the named and outlined AVAs for the entire Willamette. If you visit his tasting room, which sits in a converted rail station, you will find a book about his sister who is falconer. Her dedication to reducing the use of pesticides and managing the Tanager vineyard property is a testament to introducing sustainable methods and management that eliminate the negative environmental impacts that can result from continued chemical use. You can read more about the use of falconry as a vineyard tool at Tanager, here.
(Courtesy of Willamette Valley Wineries Association)
If you are craving a sparkling wine experience, a visit to Argyle should be on your list. This winery was the first to introduce sparkling wine to the Willamette Valley. It was established in 1987 and when I visited the winery over 20 years ago, it was a muddy path to a tiny house with a bar – behind which stood enthusiasts who wanted to know more about winemaking and whose verve was the thing that helped propel the brand. These days, the tasting room is far more splendid, regaling the visitor with attentive staff, plush seating, spectacular views, and a spectrum of dry and sparkling wines from vineyards across the Valley.
In 2008, Argyle became one of the first Oregon wineries to earn LIVE (Low Input Viticulture & Enology) certification which also includes the Salmon-Safe certification. Sustainability as a concept and a practice are embedded in the Argyle winery process from vineyard to bottle. Looking forwards, the winery is testing the idea of new grape varieties to adapt to the climate change impacts that are already shaping the Willamette Valley.
As one might expect, the change from fuel and chemical driven viticulture to one of sustainable, low impact vineyard and cellar management techniques is not unique to Oregon’s Willamette Valley. This is a global movement being ushered in by the public at large. It has surpassed political boundaries and is part of the branding that separates wineries and their wine commodity. For those who are willing to risk making the change early, they may find that the public following will pay off.
– Gillian Marks, PhD. is a contributing editor with VineRoutes
