MONTREAL — Some Quebec ice wine producers are feeling a chill not caused by the plunging temperatures of a wicked winter.
The federal government says it is poised to enact regulations that would force some vintners to change their techniques if they want keep calling their products “ice wine.” The regulations are aimed at protecting a fast-growing Canadian industry (which, producers say, is doubling in sales every three years) from becoming saturated with non-conforming products that could confuse consumers and flood the international market with bogus ice wines.
The proposed national standard for ice wine, sponsored by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, is linked to an agreement to reduce trade barriers among “new world” wine producers. Canada is a founding member of the World Wine Trade Group (WWTG), an eight-nation group and the pact would open vast new markets for the sweet Canadian nectar in WWTG nations, Argentina, Australia, South Africa, Chile, Georgia, New Zealand and the United States. The agreement stipulates that only wine made exclusively from grapes that have been naturally frozen on the vine may be labelled as ice wine.
According to the federal agency, about 95 per cent of Canada’s ice wine comes from provinces that meet the stipulation. Quebec has a “voluntary framework” while the other producing provinces have regulations that require that grapes used for making ice wine must have been hard frozen at least once to 8 °C or below, while still attached to the grapevine. The freezing draws the water out of the grapes while leaving behind the thick, sweet grape concentrate that is then fermented into the renowned dessert wine and sold for about $30 for a 200ml bottle. Many Quebec producers say they leave the fruit on the vine for at least three freeze-thaw cycles to concentrate the thick juice even more and increase the sugar content of the wine. However, in recent years, some Quebec producers have been clipping grape clusters from the vine after the first hard frost and placing them into what they call “hammocks,” rather than immediately processing them for fermentation, as the present regulations indicate.
Hammocks are a type of mesh netting that when filled with grapes resemble long sausages that run continuously along on top of the vines. Grape clusters are wrapped in the hammocks and left exposed to the elements until the producer decides to collect and squeeze the frozen grapes. According to Dan Paszkowski, the president of the Canadian Vintners Association (CVA), only five or six of Quebec’s 21 or 22 producers are using this method. “But the other Quebec producers are very concerned as it may damage the wine industry’s reputation in Quebec. They don’t want a negative stigma from those who don’t abide by the guidelines.” Paszkowski said there are very specific international standards that producers have to follow. “Some Quebec producers pick the grapes from the vine before they reach the required -8 C and place them in these hammocks until they reach the required temperature, to get the most out of the grape,” he explained. “But by Canadian and international law, the grapes must remain on the vine till the temperature meets -8 C or less. So it isn’t ice wine they are producing if the grapes are picked before reaching that temperature and if they are not still clinging to the vine when picked. “What’s to stop you from bringing in grapes from other areas or regions and stuffing the hammocks with them? The regulations must be adhered to.”
Conformity to regulations has taken on added importance to Canadian ice wine producers because China has started producing what it labels as ice wine. China, now the largest consumer of Canada’s ice wine — buying $5-million worth of the sweet wine in 2011 — could become a major competitor. And if international standards are not adhered to, the entire industry could be discredited, producers fear. “It’s very important to define these regulations to set an example for China to ensure the right international conditions are set in place,” Paszkowski said. “At this time, up to 50 per cent of ice wine sold in China is a fake product.
“If Quebec continues to use the hammock method, this makes it difficult to control the flow of fake ice wine not only in Quebec but internationally. This is why we need this federal legislation, with the intent of protecting Canadian producers, including Quebec.” “Our hopes are that Quebec falls into line to help address counterfeit products.” Meanwhile, opinion on the ground in Quebec is mixed.
Ice wine producer John Antony, of Chapelle Ste-Angès Vineyard, in Sutton, shares Paszkowski’s concern about the hammock method. “Producers here in Quebec can’t complain if a country like China says, ‘Hey, I’m going to do that, too.’ “But if we keep (on frozen grapes) picked directly from the vine, it will be more difficult for a fake ice wine to come into our market,” said the vintner, who does not use hammocks. “We have to set an example internationally so China and other new producers have a stringent set of guidelines to follow, as well as by our producers.”
Yvan Quirion, vice-president of l’Association des vignerons du Québec and owner of the vineyard Domaine St-Jacques, said that the issues is not so clear-cut. “In Ontario, they also use nets to trap falling grapes from ending up on the ground. Then they collect and crush them for ice wine production. So they use nets like we do; so what’s the difference? It’s the same process basically as we use.” Quebec producers say that they have to use the hammocks due to variable and harsh climatic conditions. Ontario’s main production area, Niagara-on-the-Lake, gets about half the amount of snow than does Quebec’s main wine-growing region, the Eastern Townships and also experiences milder weather. Quebec producers say that the harsh environment means their vines have to be covered or the cold can burn and kill the buds needed for the following year’s crop of grapes. So they cover the vines, usually with hay or dirt, to protect the next crop. Hammocks are necessary, they say, because they keep the grapes out of the snow, which would otherwise cover the grapes and require greater manpower to pick them, if they can dig them out.
However, some Ontario producers say colder winters here mean Quebec growers can harvest earlier and get the crop in before heavy snow covers the vines. So there is no excuse for the hammocks, they contend. Quirion says this dispute about harvesting techniques is not about solidarity among ice wine producers and betterment of the industry but rather about power. “That’s what this is all about; money and control,” he stated. “Part of the country wants to get the monopoly on ice wine by bringing in an appellation and we don’t have the money to hire lawyers or communicate our message. We’re very marginal in the whole scheme of things,” he said. “However, they can beat us on quantity of product, but we beat them on quality of product, and we have numerous awards to show for that.” The vintner says there is more to this conformity plan than meets the eye. “There are people who want the message to be, ‘Here we go again. The bad boys in Quebec don’t want to toe the line,” he said.
“They want to exclude us from the ice wine markets; squeeze us out. Their only goal is to make sure we cannot compete against them as producers. It’s only about money, control and politics; that’s the reality of all this, and — it’s such a shame,” Quirion said.
Source - http://www.montrealgazette.com/
