Wine Panel
Sandra Oldfield, Fritz Hollenbach, Rod King, Severine Pinte and Mike Watson.
A panel of wine and grape growing experts in BC have concluded that improving relationships and communication between growers and wineries will result in better wines.
Unfortunately that has not always been the case, say some growers, and the result has sometimes been friction between winemakers and the growers who supply their main product.
“In the old days of the grape marketing board it was almost ‘us against them’ when we sat down to negotiate a price for our grapes,” recalls Fritz Hollenbach. “Back then, the biggest pest in the vineyard was the winemaker!”
The afternoon education session of the BC Grapegrowers Association and the BC Wine Grape Council AGM, was devoted to the panel discussion of grower and winery relations. Sandra Oldfield, with the Business Alliance for Artisan Fermenters and Distillers/Fortify, was the moderator for the panel. Fritz Hollenbach, of Hollenbach Family Vineyards and Rod King of King Family Farms, provided a grower’s point of view. Severine Pinte, winemaker, viticulturist and a managing partner at Enotecca Wineries and Mike Watson, senior viticulturist for Arterra wines, provided a wineries’ perspective.
Develop a relationship
All members of the panel spoke of the relationship between the grower and the winery as key. “It all begins with a long-term trusting relationship,” says Rod King.
“What I look for in a winery partner is someone who I know is solid,” adds Hollenbach. “My relationships are long-term and they have grown into friendships (but) I’ve seen some growers jump to another winery for $100 a ton.” That does not promote a good long-term relationship.”
That relationship is a backstop when things don’t go as planned. “It is so important to have a winery who is there for you when Mother Nature steps on you,” says King.
Communication is Key
As with any relationship, communication is key, the growers said. “It is very important to have a winery that talks to you on a regular basis,” says King. ‘Not just to check in in the fall, to arrange a date for picking. It is also important for growers to step beyond the vineyard and develop an understanding of the challenges that the winery faces. Go in and talk and taste tank samples if they have kept the batches separate, because that is your product.”
Working on relationships is equally important for the winemaker, said Pinte. Sitting down and talking with growers allows Pinte to help develop grapes for the wine she has in mind. “I might ask if a grower is willing to try a certain block for a rosé,” she says. “We would grow that differently than to make a very structured red wine.
“That communication also allows me to suggest why we might want to manage two rows this way and the rest of the block another way,” Pinte adds.
A Written Contract Supports that Relationship
A contract is simply a “written handshake” and an extension of that relationship King says. “It is useful if situations arise that are unusual and that neither party could even dream of at the time, such as an illness.”
Hollenbach explained that of the three wineries he grows for, he only has a written contract with one of them. “For the other two, given the trust and the long-term relationship that I have with the winery, I have never considered that I needed one,” he explains.
“If you have trust, they are going to treat you fairly, and if you have trust they are going to pay you fairly.”
Arterra has a different take due to their size, explains Mike Watson.
“We have 1200 acres of our own and we are expanding our grower base from the current 650 acres and 15 growers,” he says. “We have some family growers who we have been with since the 1990’s and some who are brand new.
“We do have a 14-page written contract, but the nuts and bolts of those contracts are the relationships we have had with growers over the past 25 years.”
The contract works for both sides of the agreement, Watson points out. ” “It has expectations for the grower, but it also tells the grower about their rights and what they can expect from us,” explains Watson.
Three Year Renewable is the Industry Standard
“The contract that I do have is an evergreen contract (automatic renewal unless one of the parties gives notice to change),” says Hollenbach. “I think that protects both the grower and the winery. If somebody wanted to get out of it then you have a certain amount of time to make that happen.”
“For my piece of mind, I think that the longer the term for the evergreen the better,” says King. “I think the norm for the industry is three years. I would prefer something around five years.”
Again King refers to the relationship. “If things change and a winery does not have as much need for a certain varietal for example, you hope that they will recognize that it will take seven to eight years to recover your costs of replanting,” he points out. “A longer contract would recognize that risk.”
A longer-term contract provides stability for the winery as well, notes Pinte. “If we like the terroir and the grapes, we would like to continue to have that complexity in our wine over the years.” she says. “A longer term is piece of mind for the winery.”
Arterra has had a range of contracts over the years, notes Watson. “We had some for three, five, and ten years. I even found some that were open ended and signed in 1996,” he says. “Several years back we decided we wanted to get everybody standardized.”
The standard for Arterra is now three-year evergreen contracts, Watson says. But given the current market for grapes, growers might be able to get longer terms.
“Wineries have been a bit more bullish and flexible with terms,” he says. ‘If we go back to where we were four or five years ago, and I hope we don’t, it could be a lot tougher to get evergreens.”
“We recognize the expense for a grower putting in a new planting,” says Watson. “If it is the right varietal, in the right site, on the right rootstock, then we would be willing to look at a long-term deal.”
Recognize the Grower
The growers say they would like to be recognized for their efforts. “We are very proud of what we do,” Hollenbach says. “The wineries get all the awards. We would like to be acknowledged too.”
Severine Pinte agreed on the importance of recognition. “When I can go back to a grower and say this is your wine and it is being sold in a top restaurant in Vancouver, the look on that grower’s face is amazing,” she says. “It makes me proud that I have turned their grapes into that wine."
