DERRY TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- Folks in California have been dealing with drought for years, but wine lovers might actually benefit from the conditions this year. Less water means more concentration and flavor when it comes to grapes, leading to a better quality wine.
But, while California has been enjoying prime wine making conditions, central Pennsylvania is experiencing almost the opposite.
Salvatore Cullari owns Cullari Vineyards and Winery in Derry Township where he grows his own grapes. The beginning of the season has seen steady rainfall. In June the area had 3.24” above normal rainfall, and July got off to a wet start too. The vineyard is now overflowing with plump clusters of grapes. But, when it comes to wine, bigger isn't better. "The bigger the grapes, basically the more water content there is so it kind of dilutes the flavor. If you put water in a glass of wine it’s not going to taste as good as if you didn’t. The more water in the grapes, the less quality of the wine," said Cullari. "What you really want are small grapes, small clusters, and relatively dry conditions right before you pick."
The overly wet conditions typically won't affect the sweet wines, it's the dry wines that winemakers are concerned about. "Sweet wines, the flavor is different, it’s sweet so you’re not really going to get the nuances of a nice dry wine. A dry wine you can’t really do a whole lot to improve the flavor. If the grapes are not good you’re not going to have a good dry wine," said Cullari.
Cullari has also been dealing with hot and humid weather lately. "It causes fungus. When a vineyard is in conditions like we had this July you're going to have to spray at least once a week in order to control it, and even there sometimes it doesn’t work. It’s just too hot, humid and wet." Cullari said normally, the fields only have to be sprayed every 14 days to control fungus.
If August dries up, Cullari is hopeful the grapes will shrink and the season will be spared. "The critical time for a grape is just about two weeks before you pick them, so if August is dry, it’ll be ok, because the grapes will shrink," he said.
In the meantime, Cullari has planted some new grapes. "I'm switching over to grapes that are much more suited to this kind of climate, that's why they're so small." he said, "The new ones are much more resistant to the hot weather, the rain and humid conditions."