Summer’s Trials and Tribulations

The harmonious work of viticulteur and vigneron predicates on a basis of good communication between the two. A rather fortunate occurrence then, for us at ACM-IAU’s Les Saules vineyard, is that the two positions are held by one and the same person. Intimate knowledge of each specific plant and their growth throughout the last four years culminates in a fully informed approach when the process moves from vineyard to winery.

In our vineyard, as in any other, our first thought is of the weather. Too hot and the vines will dessicate, sucking their natural water-and-sugar reserves dry, and leaving us with shriveled husks of berries that are good for nothing but wormfood. Too cold and the vines go dormant, conserving energy by arresting their own growth. Marvelous solutions of the natural world that counter all desires of the winemaker. Too much wind can rip clusters right off the branch, break a shoot, or tear down a trellis. Too little and the likelihood of mold growing to spoil both leaf and grape is increased exponentially. Too much sun and the grapes themselves get burnt, causing a cooked quality to their final product. Too little and their sugar will never develop properly, leading to a dearth of food for the yeast and spoiling the fermentation process. So, how to counteract each problem? How to alleviate these worries? How to avoid going crazy attempting to work against Nature herself?

Just behind our first concern, fickle climate, is another that can be equally as devastating. Diseases or “pests.” Diseases can range from the American root-eating bug, phylloxera, to downy and powdery mildews, which share the same origins. The first is solved with an American rootstock – common practice the world over, wherein a Vitis vinifera trunk is grafted onto one of the many phylloxera-resistant species that evolved in harmony with the insect. Rootstock are usually chosen for their predispositions which allow them to thrive in specific environments, often carefully selected to match a viticulturalist’s specific plot of land. The mildews can be discouraged with wind, a naturally occurring phenomenon here in Provence, home of the mistral. Further steps can be taken, such as creating preparations – in the biodynamic sense – which discourage the mildews’ growth: yarrow, stinging nettle, and dandelion being particularly effective.

“Pests” is written as such because these are simply natural species doing what they were born to do. Noninvasive examples are the hornets (frelon) and birds (magpies, pigeons, etc.). In past years the frelon wreaked havoc on our crop of Cinsault, destroying over 80% of the grapes. Magpies and pigeons had similar effects on Syrah and Grenache, though we were able to quickly head off much of the damage by wrapping the vines in netting. Scarecrows – named Christopher and Jacques – were important additions to discourage the feathered felons. Though chemical warfare was used against the pesky frelon: traps baited with irresistible hormones. Replacing previous years’ netting with a stronger and reusable variant this summer, we took care of the birds before they became a problem. However, this failed to deter the newest predatory threats: badger (blaireau) and stone martin (fouine).

Any trouble we believed our Cinsault vines to have suffered under the frelon was visited twice again upon the Syrah by the foraging blaireau. Low-hanging fruit, its only protection being an easily-torn net, proved an irresistible temptation for our furry friend. The damage left behind attracted the birds to come back, picking over the nightly terror’s leftovers. Luckily for us, the fouine was not as skilled at avoiding traps, and was caught within a day or two of sampling our Cinsault berries. Placing dog fur and feces near repaired tears in the nets, we hope to send a territorial message to any other enterprising animals. The badger, however, definitely beat us this season.

– C. P. deLeón-Franzen