Article 11

Water, Wine & Poetry

in a Glass

By Jim Kern

Water and wine have shared a miraculous connection for thousands of years. Today, it’s the scarcity of water that plays a significant role in urban planning and in allocation of water to agriculture. And although the allure of winemaking is the sense of romance, of “poetry in a glass,” most of the winemaking process is grape growing. Bill Greenough, owner and head winemaker at Arroyo Grande’s Saucelito Canyon Winery says, “We’re just farmers.”

The issue of water usage in grape growing and winemaking is encompassed within the newly popular movement called sustainable farming, says Leon Santoro of Orfila Vineyards in the San Pasqual Valley. Orfila has been a pioneer of sustainable farming among California winemakers, a movement that also includes Groth, Fetzer, Gallo and many others. Santoro says sustainable farming is “farming in a way that future generations can farm.” Using drip irrigation, minimal soil tilling, encouraging birds of prey to limit the rodent population and using mulch are methods that lessen the impact of grape growing on the environment.

Santoro says that back in the 1970’s during his time in Napa Valley, grape growers were using sprinklers on their vineyards to simulate rain, “but you had all kinds of problems like weeds, which required tractor tilling between the rows, and soil erosion.” Drip irrigation advancements in Israel during the 1980’s meant farmers had a new option to save water. The flexible plastic water lines are strung along the vineyard trellis with individual drip lines positioned above each vine, so each plant gets just the right amount of water, thus saving water and limiting erosion and evaporation.

For a winemaking operation the size of Orfila Vineyards, drip irrigation can save a lot of water. Orfila has 40 acres under cultivation, growing six primary varietals and eleven experimental varietals. One acre contains approximately 500 vines, each requiring 200 gallons of water to produce grapes. Santoro says Orfila has its own well to draw water from, and has experimented with running drip systems below ground to apply water and inject fertilizer directly to the root system. “It really only works in mature vineyards with established root systems,” says Santoro.

It’s the use of sustainable farming that helps limit a winery’s carbon footprint, says Santoro. “We’re also looking into wind and solar power.” The method of farming so that future generations can farm seems to work favorably at Orfila. Santoro’s “Lotus” blend of white grapes Viognier, Roussanne and Marsanne won a Gold Medal at the 2007 Challenge du Vin in Bordeaux, France.

--Jim Kern holds a Professional Certificate in the Business of Wine from San Diego State University and is in charge of Wine Department Operations for Holiday Wine Cellar in Escondido. He can be reached at 760-745-1200 or by email, jim@holidaywinecellar.com. SMM

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