Well, the mid-winter cold spell broke at the farm on February 3rd, with the mercury rising to about 0F (-18C) by midnight on the 4th. Reminiscent of "Back in the day" cold spells talked about by old-timers, this weather froze pipes, disabled vehicles, and even caused a few fires - not on the farm, though. We won't know the extent of damage to plants on the farm until everything starts to leaf out in May, but there is almost certain to be die back on the more tender shrubs and trees. Unfortunately, we may also see complete loss of canes on our Wild Treasure blackberries and Cascade Gold yellow raspberries, as well. An Alaskan winter certainly isn't for the faint of heart.
And just like that, it felt like spring! A few days ago, a strong Chinook wind made its way over the Alaska range and brought above freezing temperatures to the farm. Not unusual for winter at our location. What a rollercoaster ride it is! We even start to see little insects flying around when the temperature remains above freezing for more than 24 hours in the winter.
What about that 2024 vintage you ask? Well, Interior Alaska wasn't the only place on the North American continent that experienced a good old-fashioned winter. Parts of Canada and Washington state saw their coldest temperatures in a few decades. Recently, these regions have taken advantage of a string of unseasonably warm winters to expand their foray into winemaking. One particular region chose to "improve" their wine quality by ripping out cold-hardy hybrid vines and replant with vinifera (European) varieties, like Merlot, Chardonnay, and Cabernet Sauvignon. Over the last three years, they have struggled to produce enough of a crop to maintain the recent rise in global wine fame that they have enjoyed. We wonder where they will go next. We've heard that over 30% of the vineyards and wineries in that region are for sale and a large number of the remaining ones will not replant. At the farm, we focus on cold-hardy varieties because we realize that they will see temperatures of -40F/C or colder once every 7 years and temperatures of -30F/(-35C) or colder five times over a decade. Sayonara Gewürztraminer, so long Müller-Thurgau. Why play with fire (or in this case, ice)?
We still have a few years to go before we will get any grapes (still hoping they can ripen in our climate), and even more time before we can make wine from them. In the mean time, we continue to test varieties for suitability and propagate those that have the highest potential. Right now though, a cherry Icee seems a more appropriate beverage considering the current landscape.
