The Hamilton Spectator
Final ed. News, Monday, October 22, 2001
Ross Longbottom
Niagara-On-The-Lake
- The winds of change are blowing at Château des Charmes
winery in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
The Bosc family has
installed big wind machines that can blow air across the vineyards,
raising temperatures to prevent freezing and damage to grape
vines. The winery is the first in Canada to employ the big
fans, which are a common sight in U. S. vineyards.
The machines are paying
off. On Thanksgiving weekend an alarm sounded in the bedroom
of founder Paul Bosc Sr., alerting him that the temperature
had dropped to 2 C. He called workers and headed to the fields
to fire up 25 of the machines. They pushed warmer air onto
the fields when the temperature dipped below freezing, and
saved the vines from damage.
At 12 to 15 metres high
(about four storeys), they are anomalies among the low fields
of green in Niagara. If not an open object of derision by
other grape farmers, they are nevertheless considered a curiosity.
Some farmers have wondered if the $625,000 the Bosc family
spent is sensible. There is not much doubt now, after two
killer frosts that came 10 days earlier than normal. Those
frosts killed leaves on portions of many of Niagara's vineyards.
Dead leaves can't produce the food needed to bring grapes
to their zenith of development in the last week or two of
the season. It's when colour, flavour and aroma is enhanced.
Half the grape crop was in, but many of the big-money grapes
such as cabernet sauvignon, merlot and chardonnay were still
to be harvested. The frost was the last thing grape farmers
needed after a drought year that left yields low, but quality
high. Vines need the last few weeks of warmth to build strength
for the winter, and cannot do that if the leaves are dead.
At Château des
Charmes, the 100 hectares of vineyards stayed frost-free and
more than $1-million worth of grapes continued to mature.
The winery will have the material it needs to produce the
1.2 million bottles of wine it makes each year. Paul Bosc
Jr. feels vindicated. In other years, the company has used
helicopters to fan the fields, but it was expensive and could
not be done continuously. A wind machine can run for days
if needed.
Other innovations in
the industry are also helping farmers control their crops.
More growers are installing irrigation for dry years and adding
drainage tiles for wet years, for instance. In the past, grape
growers "were literally powerless" to control the
weather, Bosc said. Art Smith, acting-manager of the Ontario
Grape Growers' Marketing Board, said Ontario will see more
wind machines as the $400-million wine industry grows and
the value of grape crops make them a reasonable investment.
Crop insurance covers
only 80 per cent of the value of the grapes, said Bosc. And
if a killing frost ruins a crop, vintners still have to buy
enough grapes to make their wine and meet any costs caused
by the delay in starting their wines. He believes it makes
more sense to spend money on wind machines. Bosc said the
machines are a common sight in the California, Oregon and
Washington wine areas.
In the hills of the
West, early warm springs are often followed by frosts. Those
are the most damaging, as grape vines are fooled into thinking
spring has arrived and they begin to bud or flower. A frost
after flowering can wipe out an entire crop, but fans have
been found to be extremely effective in moving cool air off
the vineyards. Bosc said a late spring frost is not as likely
here because of Niagara's unique configuration near the moderating
effect of Lake Ontario and the shelter of the Niagara Escarpment.
The family decided to
install wind machines because of the threat of a late frost,
or winter cold below -20 C, which can damage vines. Tests
have shown fans can raise a vineyard's temperature an average
of five degrees Celsius. "We haven't had an opportunity
to save our bacon yet in winter," said Bosc, but if only
once over the 30-year lifetime of the wind machines they save
the vineyards from destruction, "that would justify their
expense."
Other growers are cautious.
At nearby Maleta Vineyards, Stan Maleta said the general opinion
is, "it's overkill." Still, he said if he could
afford them, he would buy them for his eight hectares. One
machine covers four hectares. Donald Ziraldo of Inniskillin
Wines said he expects more machines to appear in Niagara,
particularly in higher escarpment areas prone to frost.
With the business of farming being
so delicate and success dependent on soil, location and weather,
"any kind of tool is going to be helpful."
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