Saving Old Vineyards - Economics vs Heritage

As I finished my wish-list for the current (Feb 2018) release from Bedrock Wine Company, I took a moment to re-watch Mr Morgan Twain-Peterson’s video for the vineyard restoration of the Casa Santinamaria Vineyard on the winery’s website.

I have read several articles, meeting notes from city councils, etc, about the continuing struggle to preserve old-vine sites across the West Coast. At some point:

• The encroachment of commercial development threatens countless vineyards of merit (Contra Costa);

• The diminishing returns of ancient viticultural sites fail to merit keeping vines in the ground (Lodi and elsewhere);

• The commodity value of wine grapes fail to keep pace with other agricultural products (San Joaquin and elsewhere).

I will share some resources that present some of the challenges of keeping old vines in the ground.

I will also use this thread to find a home for cool documents found online, some recent and some old, that shed light on the philosophical value of grape-growing properties.

My greatest purpose behind creating this thread is to attempt to paint a picture of both sides of the argument. I am not a land owner, and I hope to gain a better understanding of what the unsung heroes of winemaking experience when faced with the dilemma of uprooting a generational time capsule or sacrificing the current crop for one that pays the bills.
vineyard_about_1 (1).jpg
I invite all input from fellow Berserkers. :slight_smile: I do not live anywhere near these battle zones; any of my efforts in presenting a complete picture will obviously fail.

Drew, you’ve basically framed the dilemma very well. Old vines are less productive, more expensive to maintain and often don’t hold the highest demand/price grape varieties of the moment. They are constantly threatened by market factors - urban sprawl, disease, fragility and old age, changing tastes, ect.

The question is - why are they allowed to exist at all (some here in California for over 120 years)? Ultimately because they are found, over the decades, to produce exceptionaly distinctive wines that have touched an appreciative audience.

A really informative video by Morgan. I look forward to the discussion on this thread!

Thanks, Mike!

Just as the “Mourvedre Appreciation” thread should probably be run by Larry or Hardy, I think this thread should be your baby! :wink:

Then again, you have addressed this topic many times in prior posts.
DSC_6854-768x512.jpg
I recently read the second assertion by Mr Paul Draper of Ridge that a vineyard having reached a certain age does not necessarily guarantee that it did so solely on the quality of its fruit. Once, he was being interviewed for a Wine & Spirits cover story defending the merits of newer planted Zinfandel sites; I am trying to recall the more recent instance - my brain fails me at the moment.

I don’t blindly subscribe to the idea that all old vineyards are great, nor do I consider younger vineyards to be worthy of less esteem.

That being said, it is probably safe to say that I agree with you 99.9% of the time. Otherwise, this thread wouldn’t exist! :slight_smile:

Great topic, thank you, Drew!

I favor preserving the heritage and variety these “ancient” vineyards offer us.

There may be a compromise somewhere.

When we lived in the bay area we were members of the Marin area land trust. Also known as MALT.

This trust pays dairies and other agricultural concerns market equivalent development prices and in return the owners agree to maintain the area in its agricultural context.

The owners get cash, an opportunity to add a cheese making facility, etc. and we get to keep a valued part of the area and allow for the ongoing success of the landowners.

I would be more than happy to pony up contributions to an organization that did something like that regarding the preservation of ancient and heirloom vineyards.

Nonfarm value of land is a huge determinant. If the land is worth five times as much as a shopping center, then it’s likely to become a shopping center.

$100 ancient vineyard Zins/field blends coming?

When I visited Sonoma and Napa lo these many years ago I knew of one vineyard that had a “old” vine parcel. Kunde estates at that time had a block of their vineyard with 120 year old zin vines (don’t know if they still do) and you had to be in their wine club to get any of it as production was like 60 cases. I also talked to Paul Sabon who had some 50+ year old vines in Armador. As far as I remember all the owners/winemakers basicly said that the lower yields precluded them from saving anything basicly over 20 years old.

[cheers.gif]

Bill, I am 99% certain that Kunde’s Shaw Vineyard still is producing old Zinfandel.

I think Sobon still has some old vineyards kicking around…

SF Chronicle
“Vintners Rally to Preserve Russian River Valley’s Historic Zinfandel Vineyards”
by Esther Mobley
August 9, 2017

As pointed out in this article, some old vineyards have been saved by the work of individuals (ie Mike Officer) who appreciate the historical value of 100-year-old plantings. Of course, in the Piner-Olivet area, a Zin/mixed blacks site can be turned into a housing division or, just as likely, be replanted to more valuable grape varieties, like Pinot Noir.

This article by Mr Randy Caparoso, as well as its follow-up, hit the nail on the head regarding the challenges of keeping old vineyards in the ground:

Lodi Wine Grape Commission blog post:
“Last Rites for Lodi’s Old Vine Growths”
by Randy Caparoso
September 15, 2017

"Last week, half-way through the frantic (aren’t they all?) 2017 harvest, Mr. [Kevin] Phillips [Vice President of Operations for Lodi’s wildly successful Michael David Winery and its agricultural arm, Phillips Farms] took the time to send out an FYI, saying: ‘I think a lot of old vine zins will be getting yanked out of the ground this year, mostly due to labor shortages. Lodi will obviously be ground zero for this phenomenon. This is living history being demolished; the very story that actually helps Lodi attract media attention.’

"…Aaron Shinn, Vineyard Manager for Lodi’s Round Valley Ranches, tells us, ‘This is a shared concern of mine… but the removal of these heritage blocks is the unfortunate collateral damage of the current business climate in California. The bottom line is, as a grower, you have to be paid an ever-increasing premium to justify the rising expense and low yield of old head trained vines.’

Tornoutvineyard.jpg
"Vino Farms LLC Vice President Craig Ledbetter agrees; telling us: ‘This is a revenue issue. You cannot continue to farm these old blocks of Zinfandel that do not produce at a level that keeps price sustainable. Today the Zinfandel market is struggling, and growers cannot afford to farm at 3-5 tons/acre because the total revenue per acre is not a return that keeps growers in business. At the end of the day, we growers farm to make a living, not break even or even lose money.’

"…The long, productive, close working relationship between Lodi growers and giant sized, value wine producers may, in fact, may be the region’s undoing. Tegan Passalacqua – the Winemaker/Manager of Turley Wine Cellars as well as owner of his own Kirschenmann Vineyard on Lodi’s east side – minces no words in saying: 'The loss of old vine vineyards is not just a labor issue. I don’t want to name names, but this is really on the big wineries who are offering just $550/ton, whereas just a few years ago they were offering $900/ton plus bonuses for hand picked, old vine Zinfandel.

“‘This year I’ve heard that some growers were dropped by the big guys because they wouldn’t take their low-ball offerings. I know Kevin Phillips picked up some of those vineyards after contracts were dropped. Michael David pays considerably more, but they can’t ‘save’ all of them. So I can understand Kevin’s frustration.’
TeganKirschenmann.jpg
"The issue, says Passalacqua, is also a ‘grape/bottle price ratio’ that simply doesn’t work for old vine plantings going into wines selling for less than $10/bottle. ‘The thing is,’ says Passalcqua, '$550/ton is maybe a break-even point for Lodi growers. When yields are less than 5 tons, like many were this year, it’s a loss. The problem is that big wineries that have had a lock on many of Lodi’s old vines just don’t value them the way we do in, say, Napa Valley. Many of the winemakers and vineyard managers who work for the big wineries may care deeply about old vines and growers in Lodi, but not their CFOs. Ironically, of course, if Lodi loses most of these old vineyards, what’s left of them will finally become valuable.

“‘In Napa, for instance, you can no longer find Zinfandel, old or young, for even $5,000/ton. It’s impossible, as much as wineries like Robert Biale and Turley are willing to pay for them. If that happens to Lodi, I guarantee a lot of growers who tore out their old vines will kick themselves in the pants later. Maybe Lodi as a community needs to work harder on finding wineries outside the region who can appreciate the old vines a little more – before it’s too late.’"[/i]

Thanks for starting this thread Drew! I can’t help but think of Santa Clara Valley that was once an argeciltur paradise but now has been paved over. Will be watching this closely.

Yep, I grew up in the Santa Clara Valley and remember when the valley was rich with vineyards and orchards. In the words of Joni Mitchell, "they paved paradise … "

I grew up in Orange County when there were still a fair number of orange groves.

Tom

So much depends on location and pressure from housing development. Vineyards (both old and not-that-old) are under far more pressure in places like Santa Clara Valley, Livermore Valley, Contra Costa, etc. than they are in the Sierra Foothills, for example. We lost a Santa Clara Valley Vineyard west of Gilroy where Bryan Harrington was buying some very nice Fiano, Teroldego, and Lagrein a few years ago to housing development. Parts of Russian River Valley are under increasing pressure from development. Randy Caparoso brought up the labor issue in his article on Lodi, and I imagine it must apply to other regions as well. I’ve heard that more growers are going to machine harvesting as the only way to keep their vineyards economically viable. Certainly some vineyard owners have an attachment to their land and would like to pass it down to their children, but if their kids are grown and don’t have any interest, how do you convince someone to continue farming a vineyard that gets marginal returns vs. selling to a developer for lots of cash?

"The issue, says Passalacqua, is also a ‘grape/bottle price ratio’ that simply doesn’t work for old vine plantings going into wines selling for less than $10/bottle. ‘The thing is,’ says Passalcqua, '$550/ton is maybe a break-even point for Lodi growers. When yields are less than 5 tons, like many were this year, it’s a loss. The problem is that big wineries that have had a lock on many of Lodi’s old vines just don’t value them the way we do in, say, Napa Valley. Many of the winemakers and vineyard managers who work for the big wineries may care deeply about old vines and growers in Lodi, but not their CFOs. Ironically, of course, if Lodi loses most of these old vineyards, what’s left of them will finally become valuable.

“‘In Napa, for instance, you can no longer find Zinfandel, old or young, for even $5,000/ton. It’s impossible, as much as wineries like Robert Biale and Turley are willing to pay for them. If that happens to Lodi, I guarantee a lot of growers who tore out their old vines will kick themselves in the pants later. Maybe Lodi as a community needs to work harder on finding wineries outside the region who can appreciate the old vines a little more – before it’s too late.’"

There’s certainly interest. There’s a bit of that going on down in Monterrey County where fruit from the huge vineyards all went to mega wineries. Now people are parsing out the best blocks to make better, higher priced wine out of. Large growers in Lodi could do that. Demand has been growing for heritage vine fruit. They could put some effort into finding out what smaller hipster wineries want and what they’ll pay before just ripping everything out. Also, small hipster wineries doing an SVD can put their vineyard on the map and grow demand for their fruit (and help boost the whole region).

http://www.malt.org/protected/stubbs-ranch?

Kudos to Morgan and others that are preserving the wine agricultural history of California. Perhaps as much romance as anything, but I feel and sense a difference in these old vine heritage blends. I will happily pay more, and do, for them.

I know Stubbs Ranch and have visited Mary Stubbs there. But the effectiveness of an organization like MALT (which does a terrific job of helping to preserve land for agricultural use in West Marin) is an exception rather than the rule, and Stubbs Vineyard is not really a prime spot for development in any case - it’s pretty far out in the sticks. It’s not exactly a heritage vineyard either, planted in 1996.

Santa Clara Valley’s Silicon Valley is home to more than just technological innovations (be it hardware or, increasingly, software). There are more Superfund sites in the county than any other - 23!

Map Musings blog
“The Swarming of Silicon Valley, CA”

"…The expanding commute times and density of office space have replaced whatever image of a ‘Valley of Heart’s Delight’ in which technical expertise could flourish with only apparent pollution-free production of integrated circuits whose plenty replaced its formerly legendary past agricultural wealth–
sanjosevhd.jpg

  • to a not so bucolic region whose landscape can barely conceal its haunting by 23 superfund sites, toxic waste, overcrowded paved arteries, or bleak landscape of grim skies where trees poke through corporate campuses that even the best architectural romanticized futuristic rendering of Google’s new campus can barely disguise. The ever-expanded economy as retained its metaphorical toponym, but almost fully obliterated the abundance valley of the past with an entirely new sort of techno-fertility."[/i]
    bn-ic547_silico_j_20150427124035-1.jpg

Lodi Wine Grape Commission
“What Lodi Can Do to Slow Down the Loss of Old Vine Plantings”
by Randy Caparoso
October 6, 2016
DeadsoldierNomaRanchZinfandel.jpg
"Last week the Executive Board of the Lodi District Grape Growers Association (LDGGA) came together, and one of the topics addressed was Lodi’s continuous loss of heritage plantings. According to LDGGA’s Executive Director Amy Blagg: ‘We realize that increased pull-outs of head-trained vines is part of the cyclical nature of agriculture, and the decisions growers face are difficult ones. To break this cycle, we think we need to do more to promote Lodi’s old vine Zinfandel, its history, and what makes these vineyards special.’

Blagg goes on to suggest: ‘Perhaps LDGGA and the Lodi Winegrape Commission can coordinate a survey to compile a history of the region’s historic plantings. On our part, we can share family stories, the unique qualities, and help our consumers better connect with the old vines that make Lodi special. The mission of LDGGA is to work with elected officials and share the impact of legislation and regulation. We can work with elected officials to show how the laws and regulations they impose directly influence the availability and cost of labor, thereby exerting these changes in our agricultural landscape. We can share how policies such as the Estate Tax, for example, impede families from passing on properties from generation to generation.’

HVSsign.jpg
Here are some suggested tactics addressed in the article to add value to the at-risk old vineyards. I think these are good, but probably not very original. Please let me know what you think!

• Map out vineyards of distinction to increase recognition

• Establish concrete parameters for what “old” means throughout Lodi’s viticultural region

• Promote a collective agreement between growers and winemakers for reasonable prices (value by acreage, not yield)

• Lodi could host a yearly Zinfandel Technical Conference, in which Zinfandel growers and specialty winemakers, as well as media and trade, plus consumers from all over the state (and beyond) come together to taste, discuss, self-assess, and learn more about Zinfandel viticulture and winemaking.”

• Host an annual Lodi “Old Vine Picnic”, attracting locals and other wine lovers

• Post signs identifying vineyards that meet HVS/old-vine criteria

Do you have any ideas that could aid in the preservation of old-vine plantings?