BY RICHELLE THOMPSON
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Ken Schuchter, co-owner of Valley Vineyards, checks the growth of his grapes.
(Gary Landers photo)
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MORROW -- In a year when the nation has seen severe weather extremes, grape growers in southern Ohio and Indiana say this region's weather mix has been just right.
Out at Valley Vineyards in southern Warren County, the Schuchter family couldn't have scripted the weather any better to nurture a bumper crop of 26 varieties of grapes.
That means wine afficionados should be prepared: This fall, area vineyards expect to bottle more -- and higher quality -- wine. "The vines are as pretty as I've ever seen them," said Gail Haines, sales manager at the Morrow-based Valley Vineyards. "They're beautiful. So green with lots of clusters of grapes and no blights."
For Terry Shumrick, owner of the vineyard Chateau Pomije in New Alsace, Ind., 11 miles north of Lawrenceburg, this season promises to be better than last year. And the vineyard broke harvest records in 1997.
"It's been a really good year so far," Mr. Shumrick said. "The quality of the fruit so far is excellent."
Other than a few weeks of unrelenting rain, it's been a dream season for the vineyards -- and for the owners. The year kicked off with a mild winter. Although the spring was a bit wet, an ideal summer of warm days and cool nights followed.
The yield's up, said Kenneth Joseph Schuchter, who owns Valley Vineyards with his wife, Dodi, and parents, Ken and Beth. Generally, they squeeze about four tons of grapes from each of their 50 acres, generating about 30,000 gallons of wine annually. This year, they expect the yield to go up to five tons per acre.
Greg Pollman of Valley Vineyards uses a "wine thief" to draw a sample of DeChaunac.
(Gary Landers photo)
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And because the winter was so mild, the grapes are about two weeks ahead of schedule in maturity, Mr. Schuchter said. The grapes are looking good in each of the three hallmark tests: pH level, sugar content and total acidity. That should translate into better quality wines.
But neither the Schuchters nor the Shumricks will relax until the last bunch of grapes is plucked from the vine. Two years ago, the Schuchters watched helplessly as what appeared to be a stellar crop vanished when birds found the sweet fruit too difficult to resist.
"Mother Nature -- she's the boss," the younger Mr. Schuchter said. "We only work with her."
Valley Vineyards will join 18 other Ohio wineries, including Meier's Wine Cellars in Silverton, this weekend to celebrate the fruits of Mother Nature's kindness. Meier's operates a vineyard in northern Ohio.
In its fourth year, the weekend festival, Vintage Ohio, is expected to attract up to 30,000 people from throughout the region. The event also features food from 25 restaurants, games, clowns, puppeteers and sing-alongs for both parents and children.
Sponsored by the Ohio Wine Producers Association, Vintage Ohio is designed to spotlight the state's wine market. With 47 wineries and six waiting in the wings, Ohio ranks fifth in the country in the number of wineries. Most are along Lake Erie in northern Ohio, where the large bodies of water play to grapes' preferred growing environment.
Because frost hit a number of vineyards in northern Ohio, the state's overall yield should be on the low end of its annual average of between 1.75 to 2.25 million gallons, said Donniella Winchell, Ohio Wine Producers Association director.
But Tristate wine drinkers needn't fear.
"We're expecting some exceptional wines coming out of southern Ohio," Mrs. Winchell said. For information about Vintage Ohio, call 800-227-6972.
