MSU researchers analyzing novel technique to improve Michigan wine production
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EmailIlce Medina Meza, BAE assistant professor, is a study examining how removing leaves from vine canopies early in the season can help Michigan wine producers grow high-quality grapes.
According to the National Association of American Wineries, Michigan ranks in the top 10 states for wine production, number of wineries and economic impact of the wine industry.
Viticulture is important to Michigan's economy, but the state's cool climate makes for a short growing season (May-October), which can present challenges for growers limited fruit ripening, damage to vines, delayed fruit maturation especially when it comes to red wine grapes.
'michigan is really a different place to grow grapes than any other place in the world, said Paolo Sabbatini, associate professor in the Michigan State University (MSU) Department of Horticulture. However, we have the potential to produce very outstanding wines. Unfortunately, the season variability and climate challenges often limit this.
Sabbatini, along with Ilce Medina Meza, assistant professor in the MSU Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, is leading a three-year, $500,000 U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA NIFA) project testing alternative canopy management strategies to help Michigan wine producers grow grapes with high-quality aroma, color, bitterness and mouthfeel properties from the most important red cultivars planted in Michigan: pinot noir, cabernet and merlot.
The canopy of a grapevine is the part that's visible above ground. It includes the leaves, shoots and the trunk of the vine.
Canopy management is how you manage the canopy structure during the summer in a way that can really speed up fruit maturation, Sabbatini said. In Michigan, we need to be able to ripen the fruit at a lower temperature during the summer in a shorter time.
