Around New York... Statewide Vineyard Crop Development Update #4 September 23, 2016 Edited by Tim Martinson and Chris Gerling

Transcription

1 Veraison to Harvest Statewide Vineyard Crop Development Update #4 September 23, 2016 Edited by Tim Martinson and Chris Gerling Around New York... Statewide (Tim Martinson) It s 85 this Thursday afternoon. That fact underscores the extra heat both day and night we have been receiving this growing season. And the somewhat atypical experience of harvesting grapes when it s hot and dry outside. This week (see Fruit Maturity table, pp. 6-10) acids again dropped most dramatically in the Natives, with Concords and Catawba posting and -3.0 g/l drops in titratable acidity (TA), with soluble solids gaining by 1 Brix this week. Compared to last year, TAs are (again) about 3 g/l lower, and soluble solids comparable to Perhaps the low-acid Concord juice crop will be more like Washington s (with ample sunshine and heat). Most vinifera saw more modest drops in TA (-0.5 to -0.8 g/l less than last week, and the same amount lower than the 2015 samples at this time). Riesling is the outlier, with TA dropping by -1.3 g/l. Soluble solids increased by (Pinot noir and Chardonnay, nearing harvest, also Riesling) to +2.6 Brix (Lemberger). Hybrids were a mixed bag, with Cayuga white and Corot Noir dropping -1.8 to 2.7 g/l, and Traminette and Vidal blanc by -0.6 to 0.8 g/l. The cold climate cultivars, most harvested this week, posted modest gains in soluble solids <1 Brix and -0.8 to -1.2 g/l lower TA. Notably, TAs are 1 to 4 g/l lower than 2015 at this time. Plotting five years of TA readings from Veraison to Harvest samples collected in , (see figure at right) our most recent samples of Cabernet Franc, Riesling, and Concord are tracking what happened in 2012, one of the earliest and lowest-acid years and earliest finish to harvest (October 1 for Concords that year). Fruit is ripening fast, and we re entering the mid-section of the 2016 harvest. Moderate soluble solids, lower acids, and mostly disease-free fruit (but see Anna Wallis s note about sour rot from Champlain region). Lake Erie (Luke Haggerty) Concord Harvest is underway! Most of the region s processors started crushing Concords this week. The increasing berry size slowed sugar accumulations causing some adjustments in harvest schedules. With samples we are collecting here at the lab and reports from area growers, it looks like we are off to a sweet start. Titratable acidity Boxes show range of titratable acidity (TA in g/l) in Veraison to Harvest samples taken at this time over the past five years. Two 2016 samples taken on 9/12 (a) and 9/19 (b) illustrate sharp drop in TA over the past week, with levels similar to the early, hot 2012 season. Figures by Tim Martinson Page 1

2 The area was hit by thunderstorms over the past weekend, and most areas received between 1.5 and 3 inches of rain. The rest of the week has followed the trend of warm, sunny days. Again we are seeing an increase in berry size and sugar levels in most Concord blocks, putting yield into a harvestable range. Early reports from growers are mixed. Areas that experienced water stress are finding a lighter crop with lower sugar. Other areas are harvesting an average crop with brix levels between 15 and 16. The Niagara harvest finished early this week. The rebound from the 2015 winter damaged was noticeable, with two to three tons per acre more than we harvested last year. Niagara yield at the Fredonia lab averaged 7.5 tons/acre and slightly lower at the Portland lab where yield came in at 5.5 tons/acre. Long Island (Alice Wise) Just over 1 of rain was recorded at LIHREC on Monday Sept. 19. Higher amounts fell on the North Fork, up to 2. The region needed rain as the season long drought has been severe. However, getting it all in one day is not optimal during harvest season. That said, eastern US winegrowers deal with this scenario all the time and make adjustments to preserve both wine quality and quantity. The harvest schedule has been moved up a bit for whites such as Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Gewürztraminer and reds for rose. Despite the hot, dry weather through most of the summer, growers are seeing moderate Brix and acids. These characteristics do not define wine quality; rather, aromas, flavors and balance are much more important. Winemakers are pleased with fruit quality in that regard. At the research vineyard, we picked Verdejo, a Spanish white. Clusters were larger than in previous years, both in terms of berry number and berry size. Chardonnay, Albariño and Aligoté may be on the agenda in the next week. The rainfall rekindled some Botrytis and sour rot infections in susceptible varieties. Growers are dealing with this through various means harvest, sorting, cleaning fruit on the vine and judicious treatments. The weather looks agreeable for the next week or so. This alone will help to keep infections from running rampant. Finger Lakes (Hans Walter-Peterson) The Finger Lakes region got a much-needed drink of water this past weekend. Many of the NEWA weather stations in the area recorded in the neighborhood of of rain last Sunday, making it one of the rainiest days we ve had around here all season. While growers understandably get nervous about rain during harvest, this one was probably welcomed by most growers who still have fruit to finish ripening. This week s samples were collected right after the rain had fallen, so it s possible that brix might make another jump over this week with the additional water in the soil profile available to drive photosynthesis, combined with temperatures that have remained unusually warm for this time of year. High temperatures this week have been in the 80s, but are expected to drop to the 50s and 60s beginning on Friday. Alice Wise collects berry samples for Veraison to Harvest in a Long Island vineyard. Figures by Tim Martinson As we more further into harvest, the number of varieties that are starting to be picked is increasing. Chardonnay and Pinot noir have both been harvested over the past week, and we saw some of the first Riesling being harvested for sparkling production as well. Acidity is still hanging on to some extent in most of our Riesling samples so far, but I would not be surprised to see some blocks start to get picked in the next 7-10 days. Much will be determined by how well the fruit continues to hang and stave off bunch rot, and how the cooler temperatures affect the pace of ripening. Most Cayuga White blocks are empty now, and some other hybrids like Vignoles, Noiret and Corot noir have started to come off the vines as well. Between Thursday and next Monday, we ll be picking Zweigelt, Cayuga White, Lemberger, Corot noir and NY from the Teaching Vineyard. Hudson Valley and Champlain (Jim O Connell and Anna Wallis) Champlain. Grape maturity continues to progress steadily in the Champlain Valley. Slightly cooler weather slowed development a bit. Much cooler weather is in the forecast following the front coming through, and this will certainly slow things down even more. A number of varieties are being harvested in the region now. Passing showers last weekend brought between 0.2 and 0.5 of rain to the region. Page 2

3 More rain from Thursday may have an impact on berry size and chemistry. Expect average berry weight to increase and a possible decrease in soluble solids (Brix). More testing on Monday will tell us for certain. This week, the first instance of severe, late fall infestation of Spotted Wing Drosophila (SWD) in cold climate grapes in the Clinton County was confirmed. Although SWD has been known to be a problem in some thin-skinned clones of Pinot Noir in the Hudson Valley, the Champlain Valley has up until now been spared severe damage. One grower estimates he will have almost 100% loss of this year s Marquette crop. This same grower says he lost all his Marquette and Leon Millot in one section of his vineyard last year from the same problem. Other reports of fruit fly infestations are coming in, but they are yet to be confirmed as SWD. We think this year is especially bad due to the unusually warm, humid conditions this month that are ideal for SWD. We are interested to know if other growers in the Champlain Valley are having similar problems with SWD. Please reply to Anna Wallis at aew232@cornell. edu so we can better understand the extent of this problem in our region. Hudson Valley. Fall is officially here and cooler weather is expected to move in over the weekend. There is a chance of thunderstorms for tomorrow (Friday). The weekend and into next week are predicted to be cooler and sunnier, with the possibility of some rain on Tuesday. If the forecast holds true, growers may find themselves picking between rain storms to finish anything they are in the middle of harvesting. Around the region, growers have begun harvesting Seyval Blanc. The smaller growers will likely have it finished by the weekend, while the bigger growers may not finish until sometime next week. Pinot Noir is ready and those growers who have it, have started harvesting it. Further north, Baco Noir is on the picking list for this week. Riesling still has some time to go. Although samples from the Hudson Valley Research Lab in Highland, made a slight increase in Brix values this week, there is still some bitterness in the flavor of the grapes. Downy mildew is still around and powdery mildew has returned. Disease pressure from both is not too severe and growers may wait to spray depending on harvest dates. Some growers reportthat bird pressure (i.e. song birds and similar) has lessened, just in time for the turkeys to move in. Despite the battling the heat, lack of rain, the usual diseases, and now the birds and turkeys, growers seem happy thus far with their crops. With the cooler weather moving in, hopefully the fall will be more normal and give growers some breathing room between harvests Lake Erie Concord Update: Terry Bates September 23, Concord harvest has started in the Lake Erie region. We continue to record lower than average berry weight and higher than average juice soluble solids for this time of year because of the dry growing season. Berry weight is still similar but the juice soluble solids have tapered slightly compared to 2005 and the juice soluble solids follow a similar curve to the long term average. Top: Concord Berry Curve, with 2016 (green) 2015 (red) and 16-year average fresh berry weight. Bottom: Juice Soluble Solids (Brix) accumulation curve. Page 3

4 Dry Wines: Drought Stress and Wine Quality Chris Gerling and Hans Walter-Peterson It s not healthy to constantly compare yourself with others, but traveling across New York this summer I couldn t help but notice places where the grass was actually greener. These lush oases were not necessarily very far away; as few as 50 miles could make a big difference. Storms would materialize, approach, divert around us and then continue onward. Central New York (also Erie and Niagara in the west) was a red spot in whatever the weather system equivalent of Google Maps is, and all the rain was using an alternate route. If we double our 2016 rainfall in the last three months of the year, we will then have enough to reach the total for the driest year since record-keeping began in I will say that again. We need twice as much rain to match the previous low. When we talk about any impacts, therefore, we first need to keep in mind that we re in uncharted territory. So what does this mean for the wine? Hold on a second. I thought Stress Makes Great Wine, Pressure Makes Diamonds, Pain is Weakness Leaving the Body, and please hold while I go read more t-shirts. Continuing. While the stress and wine quality relationship is an over-generalization and is almost as upsetting to growers as the idea that lower yields always mean better quality, there is some basis for truth in the idea that a certain level of water stress can be beneficial, particularly at the right times. Before I make wild claims about the future, it s probably wise to have a quick review of the role water plays in vine development through the season. Here I am relying on the 2000 NY Wine Industry Workshop proceedings articles written by Alan Lakso and Bob Pool to describe the ideal water stress season. Early Season: Enough water to have adequate, but not overly-vigorous, canopy and cluster development. Bloom to fruit set: Mild stress to allow for good fruit set but growth of berries and shoots are slightly slowed. Fruit set to mid-season: More stress so that while the canopy fills the trellis, shoot growth slows markedly and berry size is reduced. Fully functional leaves are still needed, of course. Mid-season to harvest: Maintain the intermediate stress to reduce vegetative growth while still keeping most leaves healthy. Drought Stress. Through August and into September, there was little rainfall in Central New York. Symptoms of drought stress, such as dried up shoot tips (top) and yellowing/browning leaves (bottom) were in evidence in the Finger Lakes. Photos by Hans Walter-Peterson The goal here is to reduce vegetative vigor and associated problems like disease pressure and poor sunlight interception. I m an enologist so I should quit while I m behind, but my takeaway is that we are seeking maximum fruit maturity and minimum rot. While a little stress can be beneficial, stress is not the ultimate goal- and more is not better, especially at the wrong time. On the winery side, while this is all very interesting, we need to know about the grapes and what they ll be like when they re separated from the vine. Smaller berry size. Mentioned above and definitely on our minds this year, smaller berries are one area of potential difference in Tim Martinson did a series of graphs in V to H week 2 that showed we are generally on the lower end but not necessarily significantly below the 8-year average. Nova Cadamatre at Constellation reports that Cabernet Franc berry weights are about 25% lower than they were in Page 4

5 While the berry sizes seem smaller, but not necessarily significantly so, we are definitely seeing lower overall yields. Other factors besides the 2016 drought (like two harsh winters followed by a mild one with a couple of devastating days) are probably responsible as well, of course. Concentration. With less water, the thinking goes, shouldn t all the non-water compounds be proportionally greater in quantity? Higher surface to volume ratio and all that? The short answer is: sure. The longer answer is that there can only be more sugar and all of the other wonderful metabolites if the plant has the capacity to keep producing and transporting them to the berries. With too much stress, the ability to keep ripening the fruit can be compromised, but there s a catch. In times of acute stress, the vine may use energy that it should be storing for future needs and apply it toward the fruit. Soluble solids (Brix) levels are plenty high this year. Acids are generally lower, although Hans points out we just had a historically warm August so lower acids should not be shocking. Further, Tim s plots (page 1) show that while our acids trend low for the last five years, they re not necessarily lower than YANs are a little lower, or a little higher, or half as much, or three times as much, or you know what? Let s not talk about YANs for a week. YANs are variable as always. So everything looks fine, with the caveat that we may be paying a price later. Intangibles. We ve seen the drought, and it was/ is scary. We see the numbers and they are not scary. The big question is now about the character, the flavors, the depth and all the other words we use to talk about wine quality that go beyond routine analytical measures. Here the jury is out and will remain out for at least a few weeks because there s only so much you can say about grapes and juice. There is cause for fear that some of the aromatic white grapes may not be so aromatic this year, and a winemaker visiting our lab said he felt that some of the juices lacked flavor. Again, we re still speculating about the time when there will be times as many odor-active compounds in play. For now, the very good news is that 2016 grapes should be very ripe with little or no problems from disease. No cause for complaint there. There s very little available to buy, so that has to count for something. But it s hard to shake the feeling that things can t be so simple. We have endured a summer with unprecedented weather conditions that necessitated disaster recognition for many counties. We are being presented with grapes that seem none the worse for wear, at least as far as we can tell today. What s the catch? Will the wines lack complexity and focus? Will the vines suffer in the winter or next spring? Does there have to be a catch? Some of these grape cultivars grow in some pretty hot, very dry places, and these climates are considered ideal. Maybe, as Tim was speculating when we talked today, the fact that the season started dry means the vines never grew too much and never got too big to fail, as it were. Maybe it s just the hard-earned perennial weather pessimism talking. We ll know more soon enough. In the meantime, let us know what you are seeing and tasting and smelling. We are tweeting Veraison to Harvest info (OK, it s actually mostly puns). We would love to hear your impressions of the harvest. Do you like what you see? Are you worried about a variety or a condition across varieties? Send us harvest comments, photos, whatever. I would love to write my season summary using your thoughts and stories. If you tweet it to us, you can 1) make the summary richer with lots of opinions from lots of places, and 2) prevent me from calling you to ask for opinions. So either tweet at us or use the hashtag #VtoH2016 (or NYharvest2016 or whatever marketing demands, but let us know). My dream is to crowdsource the summary. Let s make it happen. Page 5

6 Fruit Composition Report - 9/19/2016 Samples reported here were collected on Monday, September 19. Where appropriate, sample data from 2015, averaged over all sites is included. Tables from 2014 are archived at Next samples will be collected on Monday, September 26. No YAN measurements this week; we are doing them biweekly. Cabernet Franc Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 E. Seneca Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 W. Seneca Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Cayuga Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Dresden Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Wayne County Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Geneva Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Lansing Hudson Valley 9/19/2016 HVRL Highland Long Island 9/19/2016 LI Long Island 9/19/2016 LI Average 9/19/ Prev. Sample 9/12/ Average 9/21/ Catawba Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 HARVEST Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Keuka Average 9/19/ Prev Sample 9/12/ Sample 9/21/2015 Keuka Cayuga White Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Keuka Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Cayuga HARVEST Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Dresden Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Ithaca Average 9/19/ Prev Sample 9/12/ Average 9/21/ Chardonnay Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Cayuga Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 W. Seneca Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Dresden HARVEST Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Lansing HARVEST Long Island 9/19/ Average 9/19/ Prev. Sample 9/12/ Average 9/21/ Page 6

7 Concord Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Keuka Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 W. Canandaigua Lake Erie 9/19/2016 Portland Lake Erie 9/19/2016 Fredonia Average 9/19/ Prev Sample 9/12/ Sample 9/21/ Corot Noir Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Dresden Prev Sample 9/6/2016 Dresden Sample 9/21/2015 Dresden Frontenac Champlain Valley 9/19/2016 Willsboro Champlain Valley 9/19/2016 Morrisonville Thousand Islands 9/19/2016 Clayton-Rake/LR Thousand Islands 9/19/2016 Clayton-No Can Mgt Thousand Islands 9/19/2016 Clayton Thousand Islands 9/19/2016 Clayton-VSP Thousand Islands 9/19/2016 Clayton-UMB Thousand Islands 9/19/2016 Clayton-TWC Average 9/19/ Prev Sample 9/12/ Average 9/21/ Frontenac Gris Champlain Valley 9/19/2016 Willsboro Prev Sample 9/12/2016 Willsboro Average 9/21/ Gruner Veltliner Finger Lakes HARVEST Final Sample 9/6/2016 Dresden Final Sample 9/8/2015 Dresden La Crescent Champlain Valley 9/19/2016 Morrisonville Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Geneva HARVEST Thousand Islands 9/19/2016 HARVEST Champlain Valley 9/19/2016 Willsboro HARVEST Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Trumansburg HARVEST Average 9/19/2016 No average 16 Final Average 9/12/ Average 9/21/ Page 7

8 Lemberger Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Keuka Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Dresden Average 9/19/ Prev. Average 9/12/ Sample 9/21/ Leon Millot Champlain Valley HARVEST 16 Final Sample 9/12/2016 Morrisonville Malbec Long Island 9/19/ Prev Sample 9/12/2016 LI Sample 9/21/2015 LI Marquette Champlain Valley 9/19/2016 Willsboro HARVEST Champlain Valley 9/19/2016 Morrisonville Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Trumansburg HARVEST Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Ithaca Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Dresden 3309 HARVEST Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Dresden Own HARVEST Lake Erie 9/19/2016 HARVEST Thousand Islands 9/19/2016 Clayton Thousand Islands 9/19/2016 Clayton Thousand Islands 9/19/2016 Clayton Average 9/19/ Prev. Average 9/12/ Sample 9/21/ Merlot Hudson Valley 9/19/2016 HVRL Highland Long Island 9/19/2016 LI Long Island 9/19/2016 LI Average 9/19/ Prev Sample 9/12/ Average Niagara 9/21/ Lake Erie 9/19/2016 Portland HARVEST Lake Erie 9/19/2016 Portland HARVEST 16 Final Sample 9/12/2016 Portland At Harvest 9/21/ Page 8

9 Noiret Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Wayne County HARVEST Hudson Valley 9/19/2016 HVRL Highland HARVEST 16 Final Sample 9/12/ Sample 9/21/ Pinot Noir Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 W. Cayuga Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 W. Cayuga Average 9/19/ Prev Sample 9/12/ Sample 9/21/2015 E. Seneca Riesling Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 W. Seneca Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 E. Seneca Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 CL 90 Cayuga Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Keuka Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 W. Seneca Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 W. Canandaigua Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Dresden Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 E. Seneca cl Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 E. Seneca cl Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 E. Seneca cl Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Wayne County Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Geneva Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Lansing Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 E Seneca Hudson Valley 9/19/2016 HVRL Highland Lake Erie 9/19/2016 Portland Long Island 9/19/2016 LI Average 9/19/ Prev Sample 9/12/ Sample 9/21/ Sauvignon Blanc Long Island HARVEST 16 Final Sample 9/12/2016 LI Final Sample 9/14/2015 LI Seyval Blanc Finger Lakes 9/6/2016 W. Cayuga HARVEST Lake Erie 9/12/2016 Portland HARVEST Average Final Sample 9/12/ Final Sample 8/31/ Page 9

10 St Croix Finger Lakes HARVEST Final Sample 9/12/2016 Geneva Final Sample 9/8/2015 Geneva Traminette Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Keuka Hudson Valley 9/19/2016 HVRL Highland Average 9/19/ Prev Sample 9/12/ Sample 9/21/ Vidal Blanc Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 Dresden Prev Sample 9/12/2016 Dresden Sample 9/21/2015 Dresden Vignoles Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 VSP Keuka Finger Lakes 9/19/2016 W. Seneca Average 9/19/ Prev Sample 9/12/ Sample 9/21/ Page 10

11 Project Focus: Under Vine Cover Crops in Noiret Alex Koeberle This past Tuesday, graduate student Raquel Kallas harvested grapes on an unseasonably warm day, feeling more like California than upstate New York. Kallas, a Cornell Viticulture and Enology MPS student, picked Noiret grapes as part of a two-year study at Prejean Winery on the western side of Seneca Lake. Noiret, released by Cornell in 2006, tends to have excess vigor compared to other hybrids and native varieties. Studies by Justine Vanden Huevel s lab have shown that cover crops can reduce vine size and shoot vigor in V. vinifera varieties. To reduce vine size and shoot vigor, in Noiret, this study is evaluating different under-vine crops including: alfalfa, chicory, fescue, glyphosate, tillage radish, and an oat/pea/ vetch/fava bean mix. The idea is that these cover crops can be an effective alternative to herbicide application and a tool for reducing excessive vine growth. Initial data from 2016 has identified dramatic differences in shoot lengths among the different cover crop treatments. Kallas suspects that shallow site soils and this year s drought exaggerated the impact of cover crops throughout the growing season. This trial was established in 2015 by MPS alumnus Taylor Mattus 16. Kallas is a graduate student of Justine Vanden Huevel, Associate Professor of Plant Science, and anticipates graduating in December After graduating, she plans on traveling to Australia to conduct vineyard drought stress research, supported by a Fredrick Dreer Award through the Horticulture Section. Noiret Under-vine Cover Crops. Top: MPS Graduate student Raquel Kallas, harvests Noiret thursday at Prejean Winery, Penn Yan. Bottom: View of vineyard plot with under-vine cover crop in Mid-August. Photos by Alex Koeberle (top) and Tim Martinson (bottom) This newsletter was made possible with support from the New York Wine and Grape Foundation, the Lake Erie Regional Grape Program, Inc. and the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station at Cornell University.. Veraison to Harvest is a joint publication of: Cornell Enology Extension Program Statewide Viticulture Extension Program Long Island Grape Program Finger Lakes Grape Program Lake Erie Regional Grape Program Eastern New York Regional Horticulture Program Copyright 2016 Cornell University The information, including any advice or recommendations, con-tained herein is based upon the research and experience of Cornell Cooperative Extension personnel. While this information constitutes the best judgement/opinion of such personnel at the time issued, neither Cornell Cooperative Extension nor any representative thereof makes any representation or warrantee, express or implied, of any particular result or application of such information, or regarding any product. Users of any product are encouraged to read and follow product-labeling instructions and check with the manu-facturer or supplier for updated information. Nothing contained in this information should be interpreted as an endorsement expressed or implied of any particular product. Page 11