Weather key in vintages

Washington growers and winemakers were more challenged by a cooler 2011 vintage, but the wine made from a warmer 2013 vintage was more appealing.

About twice as many of the more than 300 growers, winemakers, scientists and industry members who participated in a cabernet sauvignon tasting session indicated a preference for the 2013 wines versus the 2011 versions Wednesday at the Washington Association of Wine Grape Growers annual convention at Kennewick’s Three Rivers Convention Center.

A cooler vintage is more hands-on, with the focus on making sure the fruit gets better maturation early, said Gilles Nicault, director of winemaking and viticulture for Long Shadows winery of Walla Walla.

Eastern Washington had one of its coolest vintages in 2011, making it a challenge to ripen the heat-hungry cabernet sauvignon.

“As a team, we can make it work in Washington state,” he said.

Consumers want cabernet sauvignon with ripe blackberry currant flavors, but the flavor can be leafy if not grown properly, said Dick Boushey, a Grandview grower who also manages some Red Mountain vineyards.

“The biggest quality effect is the climate of that given year,” he said.

Kent Waliser, Sagemoor Group partner and general manager, said he and his team try not to have any preconceptions about how the year will turn out. Instead, they use historical data to determine trends and adapt their vineyard management as the year progresses.

Boushey said 2011 was one of those tragic episodes he’d rather block out. That year and 2010 proved Eastern Washington can have cool climate years that require an entirely different approach for growers.

Having a cool year in 2010 did help growers prepare for 2011, Boushey said. He learned the hard way how important it is to be on top of tasks early and react quickly.

“In general, there is no room for error,” he said.

Workers barely started picking cabernet sauvignon on Boushey’s Grandview vineyard and Red Mountain vineyards he manages by the end of October. They finished Nov. 12, racing to get the grapes off before winter weather hit.

Compressing harvest into four to five weeks made it hard for wineries to handle, Boushey said. Wineries only have so much capacity to accept fruit.

In 2011, the crop level was down by about 15 percent, in part because of the freeze that hit vineyards in November 2010, said David Forsyth, a winemaker with Zirkle Wine Co. of Prosser. Harvest was delayed by about two weeks.

Workers spent so much time in the vineyard that 2011 was a very expensive year, and since crop load was down, it wasn’t very profitable, Boushey said.

Ultimately, 2011 ended up being a great vintage. Boushey said a head winemaker told him it was some of the best wine they had made and requested Boushey repeat whatever he did for that vintage in the future.

With the warm 2013 vintage, Boushey said he was able to let the vineyard do its own thing for the most part. And industry members said that helped the industry prepare for last year’s warm vintage.

The state had normal crop levels in 2013 and increased acreage, Forsyth said.