By Doug Fabbioli

On April 21st, a large mass of frigid air settled on the Mid-Atlantic region after the warmest April on record in Virginia. This caused a lot of rapidly growing shoots on our vines (and other plants) to be exposed to many hours of temperatures in the 20s. No, I am not here to talk about how painful that event was for each grower or every industry, but I do have a few thoughts on how we try to recover.

The vines themselves. For us, the Tannat vines were hit the hardest. They are not a very cold hearty varietal. This freezing weather event killed off the secondary buds as well as buds that pushed. You can see from the photo there is no life on the branches along the wire where the future fruit would develop. There is life at the base of the vine. We can identify the Tannat leaves from the rootstock it is grafted on. Then we protect and train those Tannat shoots to replace the trunk and branches of the vine. The shoots at this stage are very tender and can break off the trunk very easily. So gentle care and choosing the right one or two is critical. These could produce fruit next year if things go well. There is lots of energy coming from our well-developed root system so this can affect the balance of the vine. Big shoots, or bull wood, do not produce the best buds for growing fruit. Pencil sized or pinky sized shoots are best to train.

The winery business is in recovery. Even though there may be little or no crops coming from the vineyard, the vines need to be farmed, and the rebuilding described above can be more labor intensive that a regular season. Sprays, training, mowing and canopy management are all harder because each vine needs its own level of attention. Wineries have inventory in bottles and barrels, but this loss of a vintage knocks any future planning into a challenging situation. Last year was a very low crop vintage as well for many growers and most wineries were looking to catch up this season. Yes, we sell less wine than in the past, but we are in the business of growing grapes and making wine from our land. Crop insurance is expensive and needs numerous years of successful history to be considered. So, we will recover, but some wineries may say enough is enough.

Peaches, apples, pears, cherries, berries and more were all affected by this weather event along with the grapes in the Mid Atlantic wine region. Do we stop growing here? We certainly received plenty of press about it. We need the long-term commitment from our communities to buy our wines, share our wines and visit our wineries when guests are in town. We need our fabulous wedding venues to offer and serve local wines. We need our restaurants to do the same. This patronage and cash flow will help the businesses make positive choices that will keep the industry alive through this event. Some wineries may import fruit from other regions to keep products moving. We have done this in the past. This is not a sin, it is survival. Ask your server the story behind the wine and the grapes.

We are farmers, committed to the land and the community. These businesses will last for many years and maybe with new owners. They add culture to the region and offer so much more that a convenience store or another strip mall. Please patronize your local winery and farm operation. We will work through the highs and lows to offer you the best flavors and experience we can. We are already recovering!

About the Author: Farmer, winemaker, entrepreneur, educator, and leader, Doug Fabbioli has been accelerating the growth and quality of Virginia’s wine industry since 1997. With his wife Colleen, Doug is the owner/operator of Fabbioli Cellars in Leesburg, VA. He is the founder and director of The New Ag School, which focuses on teaching the next generation of farmers and agriculture-related leaders. No wonder they call Doug Fabbioli the Godfather of DC’s Wine Country.