Winter can be helpful once in a while.
The bitter cold temperatures last week helped winemakers at Niagara Landing and Schulze Winery in Burt harvest and process frozen wine grapes. The grapes will be used to make “ice wine,” a type of dessert wine that before last year local wineries were not successful at making. The reason was the weather wasn’t consistently cold enough.
“For three straight days the high temperature has to be less than 18 degrees,” Niagara Landing co-owner Jackie Connelly said.
Last week was certainly cold enough, with most high temperatures staying in single digits. Last year was also cold enough for the wineries to pick the frozen grapes making it the first time Niagara County winemakers could produce ice wine.
Grapes are left on the vine after harvest in the fall. The fermentation process occurs slowly after the grapes have been frozen and picked.
Niagara Landing began the harvesting of the frozen grapes on Saturday morning. A group of volunteers showed up in the bitter cold at 7:30 a.m. to pick the grapes. Treated to bagels and a cup of coffee, the volunteers started picking the frozen grapes at about 8 a.m. The group finished after two hours of picking Vidal blanc and Catawba grapes and pressing continued into Sunday night.
Schulze Winery had its ice wine grape picking Friday. Ann Schulze said a small group of regular workers and family picked Vidal blanc grapes, the traditional ice wine grape, as well as Catawba grapes.
“We decided to try them,” Schulze said of the Catawba grapes. “They have thick skin and it hangs well (on the vine). It’s going along nicely.”
Connelly said the wine could be ready sometime in late summer possibly fall. It all depends on how the juice from the grapes ferment.
“Every year is different,” she said.
Hopefully the ice wine will not be all that different. Niagara Landing just learned Friday that Wine Enthusiast, a wine publication, rated its ice wine harvested last winter at 86 out of 100 and will be featured in its April issue.
The fermentation process takes about four to six weeks, slower than most wines, Schulze said. That’s because the juice drips instead of flows, Connelly said. Last year’s wine has a sweeter taste, with hints of apricot, mango, papaya and some honey.
The production of ice wine is popular in Ontario, and in Germany where it is known as “Eiswein.”
Contact reporter Joe Olenick at 439-9222, ext. 6241.
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