By ANDREW SELSKY | Associated Press
The U.S. West Coast, responsible for more than 90% of America’s wine production, faces a significant challenge due to its vulnerability to wildfires. This dangerous combination proved catastrophic for the wine industry in 2020, prompting scientists to urgently seek solutions.
If you’ve ever tasted a good wine, you may have detected hints of oak or red fruit. However, if you were to sip on wine made from grapes exposed to smoke, you would likely find that it resembles the taste of an ashtray emptied into your glass.
To confront this threat, experts from three West Coast universities are collaborating to develop innovative measures. These include the creation of spray coatings to protect grapes, identifying the elusive compounds responsible for the ashy taste, and implementing smoke sensors in vineyards to gain a better understanding of smoke behavior.
Millions of dollars in research funding from the U.S. government, as well as proactive efforts by wineries, are driving these initiatives to safeguard the wine industry.
The risk to America’s leading wine-producing regions, which suffered billions of dollars in losses from wildfires in 2020, continues to escalate due to the deepening drought caused by climate change and the heightened susceptibility of overgrown forests to fires. The U.S. Department of Agriculture states that grapes are the highest-value crop in the country, with 96% of the 1 million acres of grape-bearing land located on the West Coast.
Winemakers worldwide are already adapting to climate change by relocating vineyards to cooler areas and cultivating grape varieties that thrive in drought and heat. However, the immediate threat of wildfires requires urgent attention from scientists affiliated with Oregon State University, Washington State University, and the University of California, Davis.
According to Tom Collins, a wine scientist from Washington State University, the ability to continue wine production in areas prone to smoke exposures is at stake.
Recently, researcher Cole Cerrato carried out an experiment in Oregon State University’s vineyard, located near Alpine, where he used a fan to direct smoke from a Weber grill through a dryer vent hose. The smoke enveloped a row of grapes enclosed in a makeshift greenhouse made of plastic sheets.
The grapes exposed to smoke were transformed into wine by Elizabeth Tomasino and her team at Oregon State University. Their analysis revealed the presence of sulfur-containing compounds known as thiophenols in the smoke-impacted wine, contributing to the ashy flavor. Previous research by Australian scientists over a decade ago identified “volatile phenols” as another significant factor in wines affected by bushfires. The impact on Australia’s wine industry has been longstanding. Tom Collins confirmed the presence of sulfur compounds in the wine exposed to smoke at the Oregon vineyard, whereas no smoke exposure was detected in other wine samples from the same location.
Consequently, the researchers aim to understand how thiophenols, which are undetectable in wildfire smoke, manifest in smoke-exposed wine and develop methods to eliminate them.
Cerrato asserts, “There’s still a lot of very interesting chemistry and very interesting research to start looking more into these new compounds. We just don’t have the answers yet.”
Wine made from tainted grapes can be unpalatable and unsellable, posing a significant risk to a winemaker’s reputation. In response, some California wineries in heavily affected regions in 2020 refused to accept grapes that weren’t tested. However, most growers struggled to find labs to analyze their grapes due to overwhelming demand.
According to an analysis conducted by Jon Moramarco of bw166, a consulting firm, the estimated damage to the California wine industry in 2020 alone amounted to $3.7 billion. A major portion of this loss resulted from wineries forfeiting future wine sales.
“The impact was mostly felt in Napa Valley, an area known for its high-priced grapes and wines in the U.S.,” explained Moramarco, emphasizing the financial consequences. If a ton of cabernet sauvignon grapes is ruined, it translates to an approximate loss of 720 bottles of wine, worth $100 each – a significant and rapid accumulation of losses.
Between 165,000 to 325,000 tons of California wine grapes were left unused in 2020 due to actual or perceived exposure to wildfire smoke, according to Natalie Collins, president of the California Association of Winegrape Growers.
Although no growers have yet abandoned the industry due to the impact of wildfires, many struggle to secure costly and comprehensive insurance policies due to the prevalent fire risk in their region.
Various winemakers are experimenting with techniques to mitigate the impact of smoke exposure, including passing the wine through a membrane or treating it with carbon. However, these methods risk altering the wine’s desirable characteristics. Blending affected grapes with others is an alternative, and making rosé wine instead of red can lower the concentration of smoke flavor compounds by minimizing contact with the grape skins.
Across Washington State University, Collins has been researching the application of finely powdered kaolin or bentonite clays mixed with water, sprayed onto wine grapes to absorb smoke-related substances. The clay coating would be rinsed off before harvest. Oregon State University is also developing a spray-on coating.
As a part of these efforts, numerous smoke sensors have been installed in vineyards across the three states, funded in part by a $7.65 million grant from the USDA.
Anita Oberholster, leading UC Davis’ research, explained that these instruments play a crucial role in measuring smoke marker compounds. This data is essential for developing mitigation strategies and assessing smoke exposure risk.
Greg Jones, director of the Oregon Wine Board and owner of Abacela winery in Oregon’s Umpqua Valley, commended the scientists’ endeavors, stating, “This research has really gone a long way to help us try to find ways of quickly determining whether fruit from the vineyard has compounds that would lead to smoke-impacted wine.”
Collins remains optimistic about their progress, stating, “I think it’s increasingly clear that we’re not likely to find a magic bullet, but we will find a set of strategies.”
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