Farming is a cycle of growth, maturation, harvest, and preparation for the next season. Add in the making and selling a product like wine, and things can get complicated. A year in wine production is a seesaw of highs and lows, leading from one to another with natural momentum. When looking back upon a year, it’s helpful to remember we’re peering through a small window and into a vast room.
Climate: a hot, dry summer
A warm spring set the pace for a hot summer, ending with an early harvest. The British Columbia Wine Institute (BCWI) reports an above average number of growing degree days and lower than normal precipitation. Combined, these form ideal conditions for unique challenges: maintaining crop load and yields to keep vineyards balanced.
“We backed off some vineyard management techniques”, says proprietor/winemaker Bradley Cooper of Black Cloud Wine. “We tried to cool the vineyard, to slow it down.” As grapes ripen they produce sugars, which are measured in brix and (with yeast) result in alcohol. “I’ve never seen sugars this high”, says Cooper. “We were three weeks early and two brix higher than in previous years.”
Bradley Cooper
Bradley Cooper of Black Cloud Wine.
One challenge was to match vigorous growth with physiological maturity (flavour development). Body and structure help a wine help present higher sugars/brix and alcohol percentages better, but it can require more intervention-based winemaking.
Dry conditions also sparked an environmental threat. From August 14 to mid-October more than 5,000 hectares of forest burned in the Testalinden fire with nearby wineries keeping a close eye for a tense few days. Fortunately, none experienced losses and all are optimistic for the 2015 vintage. The truth is now in the bottle, literally; early sampling of fermented wines shows ripe fruit and dynamic flavours.
Grapes: what’s growing, selling, and finding acclaim
While results for the 2015 Grape Growers Acreage Report have not been published at the time of this writing, patterns are emerging. Between 2011 and 2014, Chardonnay replaced Pinot Noir as the third most planted grape in the province. Cabernet Franc bumped Syrah out of seventh place. What to plant is largely (and should be) based on site, but it’s backed up by consumer selection: a grape variety won’t be widely planted if there is no palate for it.
More wineries open each year. Taking over existing locations (Evolve Cellars), adding production to established vineyards (Vin Perdu, Bordertown, Back Door), and some with new sites (Bella Wines). Each new road sign brings opportunity to raise the bar and a risk of diluting the market.
Lunesscence
Lunessence Winery took over the existing location of Sonoran, on Gartrell Rd. in Summerland.
“The biggest traction we’ve received – regardless of the grapes we chose – has been through our focus”, states Jay Drysdale, proprietor and winemaker at Bella Wines. “Focus allows consumers to self-educate, without feeling intimidated.” To craft their sparkling wines, Drysdale planted Chardonnay and Gamay on Bella’s estate Naramata vineyard.
Jay Drysdale
Jay Drysdale of Bella Wines.
Based on a survey conducted by Orchard and Vine, some strong varieties in the vineyard and marketplace are Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Pinot Gris, Cabernet Franc, and Gamay Noir. Grape growers are focusing in the vineyard and people are taking notice. In August, wine critic Steven Spurrier (of Decanter Magazine and the original Judgment of Paris) visited the Okanagan. From Syrah to Chardonnay, he tasted his way through several wine portfolios with positive results. In a press release from the BCWI, Spurrier said “For me wine is the three ‘P’s: the place, the people, and the product. British Columbia ticks all these boxes with exuberance, elegance, and conviction.”
Challenges: licensing, labour, and liquor control
Wholesale pricing was introduced in April and wine producers voiced frustration over its rollout. Many continue to seek clarity on how to offer fair and competitive prices to hospitality, retail outlets, and consumers. Inter-provincial sales remain a murky and unsettled subject, with federal law supporting it but provinces slow to adopt legislation. This discrepancy is one more barrier to maintaining a healthy cash flow.
Challenges expresssed in the Orchard and Vine survey included cash flow, labour, licensing, expansion, and supply chain management. Recruiting and retaining staff were also a challenge. Sandra Oldfield, president and CEO at Tinhorn Creek Vineyards, offers one labour solution: hire permanently. “We bumped up our vineyard staff to salary”, she explains. “It’s part of our business sustainability program.” The biggest labour crunch has been in hospitality at Miradoro Restaurant. “Staff want to work with a hyper-local restaurant and be trained by good people like (proprietor) Manny and (chef) Jeff”, Oldfield says. “But there’s no place for staff to sleep. The area has almost no rentals or accommodations.” It’s a problem not unique to the wine industry – hospitality shortages have been identified across the province, including in resort towns like Whistler and Big White.
Legislatively, Bill 22 (the Special Wine Store Licence Auction Act) would allow “the highest bidders access to a limited number of licenses to sell BC wine off grocery store shelves”, according to the Ministry of Justice. Wine in grocery stores is a response to last year’s provincial liquor licensing review and public consultation; the playing field is not clear, and it’s making waves in the wine industry and private retail channels. Producers are quick to note this was not at their behest and many are trying to work within the framework presented to them. At time of this writing, only VQA licenses are supported in the store-within-a-store model at three locations in the lower mainland, and two more in Kelowna recently announcing moves for 2016.
Appellation: what’s in a name?
On March 30, a group of 11 wineries announced the province’s first official sub-appellation (or sub-geographical indicator): the Golden Mile Bench. Marked by scientific parameters of slope, soil, and elevation or aspect, the Golden Mile Bench was mapped in partnership with scientists from AAFC-PARC Summerland.
This came at the same time as the formation of the BC Wine Appellation Task Group, comprised of industry stakeholders charged with making recommendations to the BC Wines of Marked Quality Regulations. After months of consultation, recommendations included: ending the use of taste panels in the VQA program, introducing new regions (Thompson Valley, Shuswap, Lillooet-Lytton, and Kootenays), and membership to the BCWA required for approved winery licenses. If and how these recommendations are implemented might cause discord, too.
With growth and change come opportunities and risks. In the wine industry, these are nothing new – what matters is how we respond and what we do to better position ourselves on that seesaw for increased stability in riding out the highs and lows, together.
