The heart of British ColumbiaB次元官网网址檚 wine industry is reeling after suffering a litany of climate-related hits, resulting in two years of crop losses in the southern Interior.
Record-breaking heat. Wildfires and smoke that repeatedly contaminated grapes. A destructive cold snap in 2022. Then, the hammer blow B次元官网网址� another deep freeze this January that is estimated to have inflicted up to 99 per cent crop loss across the province, wiping out this yearB次元官网网址檚 vintage.
While vineyards need support, sommelier Van Doren Chan says itB次元官网网址檚 an opportunity to reshape winemaking in the province.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 almost like itB次元官网网址檚 a clean slate,B次元官网网址� she says. B次元官网网址淗ow are we going to structure the next generation of B.C. wine?B次元官网网址�
Chan says all signs suggest only a limited selection of B.C. wine will hit retail shelves in coming years while vineyards and wineries recover.
B次元官网网址淭alking to a few producers, I think a lot of them will not make it to the retail market,B次元官网网址� says Chan, a wine and culinary consultant and board member with the B.C. chapter of the Canadian Association of Professional Sommeliers.
With many undertaking massive replanting effortsB次元官网网址� which involve waiting at least three years for vines to produce wine grapes B次元官网网址� Chan says she expects wineries will be focused on direct-to-consumer sales and fulfilling orders for their members.
The cost of B.C. wines is likely to rise, continuing a trend that Chan says sheB次元官网网址檚 been noticing for several years with crop losses compounded by global inflation.
B次元官网网址淔or a small wine region, and very young wine region, what weB次元官网网址檙e producing is world class. But itB次元官网网址檚 hard to compare to prices from France or even if weB次元官网网址檙e talking about Argentina or Chile B次元官网网址� they produce really high-quality wine at a very competitive price.B次元官网网址�
Chan says the industryB次元官网网址檚 struggle is also an opportunity to get consumers excited about supporting B.C.B次元官网网址檚 grape and wine producers for years to come.
B次元官网网址淢ake it into a marketing campaign and say, B次元官网网址楬ey, weB次元官网网址檙e suffering B次元官网网址� We need to raise your price for the next thee years, because we need to re-establish these vines, but then weB次元官网网址檙e going to have all these amazing grapes and you get to try something new.B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址�
Charlie Baessler with Corcelettes Estate Winery outside Keremeos, B.C., says theyB次元官网网址檙e among the producers replanting as much as they can, as fast as they can.
A recent newsletter from the winery says theyB次元官网网址檙e scaling back promotional activities to focus on replanting while conserving wine for members and direct sales.
B次元官网网址淲e just need to be patient, and wait for our new plantings to once again produce some of CanadaB次元官网网址檚 greatest wines,B次元官网网址� it says.
B.C.B次元官网网址檚 vineyards and wineries have been B次元官网网址渒icked while being downB次元官网网址� in the last few years, says Baessler, a partner, viticulturalist and general manager at Corcelettes.
The deep freeze in mid-January saw temperatures in major wine-producing areas of B.C.B次元官网网址檚 southern Interior drop to -27 C, a temperature that Baessler says is B次元官网网址渓ethalB次元官网网址� for grapevines and their buds, no matter the variety.
A February report from Wine Growers BC estimates a harvest of only one to three per cent of normal levels, meaning B次元官网网址渁n almost complete writeoff of the 2024 vintageB次元官网网址� and revenue losses of up to $346 million for vineyards and wineries.
The December 2022 cold snap had already led to B次元官网网址渢otal crop lossB次元官网网址� for CorcelettesB次元官网网址� 2023 vintage, Baessler says.
ThatB次元官网网址檚 on top of several severe wildfire seasons, which brought thick smoke that can be B次元官网网址渃atastrophicB次元官网网址� for the flavouring and quality of wine, Baessler says.
The fires also put a damper on tourism throughout B.C.B次元官网网址檚 southern Interior, reducing the visitors wineries depend on for revenue, he adds.
B次元官网网址淥ur experience is like a RubikB次元官网网址檚 cube of challenges that weB次元官网网址檙e constantly navigating,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淲e havenB次元官网网址檛 exactly been high on the hog to have made bank in order to weather these last two winter events.B次元官网网址�
Baessler says the team at Corcelettes has decided to replant and rearrange different types of grapes and varietals across the wineryB次元官网网址檚 five unique vineyards, which offer varying soil and environmental conditions.
B次元官网网址淭here are certainly varietals in our existing portfolio that bear more risk than others, so those will certainly be relocated to our lowest-risk vineyard sites.B次元官网网址�
Miles Proden, president of Wine Growers BC, says there is worry and even panic in the industry given the B次元官网网址渟teady declineB次元官网网址� of grape harvests in recent years.
But many vineyards, like Corcelettes, have been working to adapt to climate challenges, making sure theyB次元官网网址檝e got B次元官网网址渢he right grape in the right place,B次元官网网址� he says.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e in a good place to reset the vineyard for the future,B次元官网网址� Proden says.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 not as though we canB次元官网网址檛 grow grapes and make wine in B.C. ItB次元官网网址檚 just that with climate change, there needs to be adjustments.B次元官网网址�
Still, replanting isnB次元官网网址檛 the only challenge B.C.B次元官网网址檚 wineries are facing. After two years of crop losses, Proden says wineries need to find enough grapes to sustain the winemaking side of the business, or simply make enough wine to keep their doors open.
B次元官网网址淲e need to look at some options,B次元官网网址� he says. It could mean bringing grapes or wine from Ontario, or even Washington state, but governments will need to help with the regulatory changes required to make that happen, even temporarily, Proden says.
The support is crucial, as B.C. wineries employ thousands of people and theyB次元官网网址檙e a key part of the rural economy throughout the province, from Vancouver Island to the Fraser Valley, Okanagan, Thompson and Similkameen regions, he notes.
Elizabeth Wolkovich, an ecologist specializing in climate change and plants, says winemaking regions worldwide have been feeling the pinch. In some ways, global heating could improve the climate for wine grapes in Canada, she adds.
But Wolkovich says she hasnB次元官网网址檛 seen any evidence of a grape variety, even a more cold-tolerant hybrid, that could have survived JanuaryB次元官网网址檚 freeze.
B次元官网网址淭he regions on the northern edges, especially, I think, in Canada, are just grappling with this additional factor of the cold snap,B次元官网网址� says Wolkovich, anassociate professor in the department of forest and conservation sciences at the University of B.C.
Baessler, too, says he hasnB次元官网网址檛 seen a vine in the textbook that survives -27 C.
B次元官网网址淥nce you understand that, it puts them all back on the table.B次元官网网址�
Baessler says B.C. wines compete on the global stage and contribute more than $3 billion to the provincial economy. The government has many priorities, from health care to housing, but it canB次元官网网址檛 afford to turn its back on the industry, he says.
If support doesnB次元官网网址檛 materialize, B次元官网网址渢hereB次元官网网址檚 going to be a lot of empty, shiny buildings (from) what used to be a really exciting wine industry,B次元官网网址� Baessler says.
The federal government has a wine sector support program and recently earmarked an additional $177 million over three years. A statement from Agriculture Canada says 207 wineries in B.C. have received support through the program since July 2022.
Earlier this month, Ottawa also announced funding for two initiatives led by the Canadian Grapevine Certification Network B次元官网网址渢o advance science and research and increase the competitiveness of the sector,B次元官网网址� the department says.
B次元官网网址淭here will always be a B.C. wine industry,B次元官网网址� Proden says. B次元官网网址淲e make too good of a wine not to.B次元官网网址�
The climate typically characterized by hot days and cool nights produce crisp vintages that are exactly what todayB次元官网网址檚 consumers are looking for, he says.
B次元官网网址淧rovided we have enough grapes.B次元官网网址�
This is the first in a three-part series, B次元官网网址淏.C.B次元官网网址檚 bitter harvest,B次元官网网址� examining the consequences of weather and climate crises for agriculture, and how farmers and others are charting a path forward.
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