Smoke from the Bald Range wildfire clouds the air over an unidentified vineyard overlooking Lake Okanagan on Aug. 8.Paige Taylor White/Reuters
Alison Moyes, winemaker at Solvero in the Garnet Valley in Summerland, B.C., watched camera feeds from her home in Penticton as the fast-moving Bald Range wildfire bore down on the winery on Aug. 7, while her colleagues evacuated the property for safe accommodations in nearby Naramata.
“When the power cut out at midnight, we had no idea what would be left,” she said.
The Bald Range wildfire forced the evacuation of around 20,000 properties in and around Summerland in the central Okanagan last month, destroying about 150 structures.
Moyes joined winery owner Matt Sartor and the rest of the team on Aug. 16 when they were able to return to the site and calculate the damage. Using a temporary access permit available to agricultural operators, they returned to find the winery and other structures, including Sartor’s family home and a tasting room, still standing. But this year’s crop won’t be harvested to make wine.
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Things could have been worse. Neighbours on both sides of the winery lost their homes to the blaze, while others in the surrounding area also lost barns and crops.
Wineries and other Okanagan businesses are working to overcome the effects of a harsh summer. Tourism numbers are down as the Okanagan and Similkameen valleys continue to face a high-risk wildfire season because of continuing drought, prolonged heat waves and windy weather, while some grapes have had to be harvested early because of the heat.
At Solvero, the irrigated grape vines helped to provide a buffer from wildfires. Grape leaves and vines don’t burn as easily as dry vegetation like the dense Ponderosa pine forest adjacent to the winery.
“It is remarkable to see the path the fire took,” Moyes said. “It burned the trees behind the winery, jumped the vineyard and continued through the forest.”
The irrigation system for the vineyard needed repair and a generator was brought in until power could be fully restored to the area. Some singed vines will need to be replaced.
Solvero winemaker Alison Moyes: “I’ve learned a lot about wildfires having gone through this.”Jon Adrian/Supplied
Meanwhile, Moyes is hoping to find replacement grapes from vineyards in unaffected areas in the province such as Vancouver Island and the Fraser Valley. “We will be going through the crop insurance process,” she said.
Watering the vines that had survived the fire to keep them productive in the future was the priority, Moyes said. Solvero has another vineyard in Happy Valley, B.C., where this year’s crop will be tested for smoke damage.
“I’ve learned a lot about wildfires having gone through this,” Moyes said.
Hot and dry conditions have also led to an early grape harvest at some wineries. Vineyards across the region bloomed early, and the growth cycle has consistently been two weeks ahead of schedule, according to winemakers.
“From a seasonal perspective, we are well ahead of where we traditionally are,” said Ben Bryant, western operations manager for wine producer Andrew Peller Ltd.
Peller started its harvest on Aug. 14, bringing in chardonnay grapes for sparkling wine and table wine. Grapes used for sparkling wine are typically harvested when they are less ripe so that the finished, fizzy wines have a refreshing acidity. They are usually the first to be harvested, while those used for table wine are picked when they have higher sugar levels and riper fruit flavours weeks later in the summer.
As for concerns about the effect of smoke on this year’s crop, Bryant said it’s too early to assess. There are localized challenges faced by the vineyards in Summerland, including smoke and ash concerns. (Tender fruit growers in the area, especially peach and plum orchards, face similar challenges. A portion of this year’s crop risks becoming worthless because it was ready for harvest as the evacuation orders were distributed.)
“Fire isn’t a new issue in the Okanagan, we’ve been here before,” said Bryant, who added there is greater awareness and understanding of the impact of smoke on vineyards because of continuing international research.
The issue for winemakers is the unpredictable nature of what smoke will do to a cluster of grapes. The threat is that volatile phenols from the airborne smoke can be absorbed through the grape skins and become bound to the sugars in the berry. Those acrid compounds are released during fermentation into the flavour of the wine. But smoke affects different grape varieties at different stages of ripening in different ways, so there isn’t a silver bullet to remedy the problem.
Pamplemousse Jus Natural Winery’s Jordan Kubek hopes tourists will consider visiting the Okanagan this fall: “It’s my favourite time of the year here.”Supplied
“Not all grape varieties are susceptible to smoke in the same way. Every winery will make decisions that give us the best outcome given the circumstances we are facing,” Bryant said. Continuing issues with wildfires in wine regions around the world have introduced new technology and treatments to mitigate the impact of smoke without stripping away desirable flavours, aromas, body or colour.
The devastating effect of last month’s wildfire is not confined to Summerland’s small agricultural community, said Jordan Kubek, winemaker and co-owner of Pamplemousse Jus Natural Winery, and chair of the Bottleneck Drive Association, which represents Summerland producers. Its timing during the peak tourism season resulted in cancellations at hotels, restaurants and wineries.
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“This affects all of the Okanagan and all of British Columbia,” she explained.
The Okanagan Valley is home to 86 per cent of the grapes grown in British Columbia, which are cultivated in vineyards that stretch across 250 kilometres, from Vernon to Osoyoos, at the border with Washington state. The vineyards hug a system of six main lakes across a changing landscape of lakeside resorts, rolling benchlands and sagebrush-covered foothills.
It is a broad and diverse region that has been divided into 11 distinct grape-growing areas based on the variety of soils and landscape as well as other natural factors. Three of those sub-appellations are based in Summerland, namely Summerland Bench, Summerland Lakefront and Summerland Valleys, where Solvero’s high-elevation vineyards in Garnet Valley are located.
But even given the Okanagan’s expansive and varied nature, tourists aren’t likely to book a holiday while fires are burning anywhere in the region. The decline in visitation is a significant setback for an industry that relies on tourism from Easter to Thanksgiving.
Operators across British Columbia’s wine country are hoping for a strong finish to the season, said Kubek, who has lived in Summerland for 16 years.
“The fall is an amazing time to visit. It’s my favourite time of the year here,” she said.