Request for Grape and Wine Samples to Study Effects of Smoke - by Lynn Wunderlich, Central Sierra UCCE Farm Advisor

By now we are all wondering what the effects of this season’s smoke will be on our local fruit.  Anita Oberholster, our UCCE Enology Specialist, is asking growers and winemakers from across the state to freeze grapes and wine samples that relate to those grapes for her to analyze later next year (she’s in the midst of several studies and will have a large back log of samples). 

I’m asking those of you who can, to please consider freezing grapes and asking your winemaker to freeze the wine from those grapes for Anita to look at so that we can get a better understanding, and perhaps predict in the future, what this sort of smoke exposure will produce. The following are instructions provided by Dr. Oberholster to submit your samples:

Needed are grapes samples and the wine samples that relate directly to those grapes samples. Please do not send blended fruit and nothing having oak contact (these can’t relate it to atmospheric data or to the grapes). Freeze about 0.5 lbs of fruit in a zip lock bag and clearly indicate all potential info as well as location. Wines need to be at least 100 mL and frozen in a plastic bottle with all the relevant info.

Preferably, and if possible, freeze the fruit and wine now and store it for later as the samples will not be processed until next year. Funding is being sought to relate atmospheric data to ground VP data. Even older smoke and ash is a potential risk. Later, one has no idea what is fresh and what is not fresh.

Those that want to send the wines now, can send as follows. It needs to be solid frozen samples and well packed to stay frozen until delivered.

ATTENTION: Stephanie Machado
FOR: Anita Oberholster
1139 RMI North
595 Hilgard Ln
1 Shields Ave
Davis, Ca. 95616

Contact Lynn with any questions.  Cell: 530-306-0650, lrwunderlich@ucanr.edu