I’m interested to try Tai-Ran’s wines as well.
While we don’t follow Fukuoka as far down the rabbit hole as Tai-Ran is, leaving the vineyard be is definitely something we have pushed in our farming at Whistling Ridge. Some of the results have been remarkable and have brought an ability to produce what are some of my very favorite, and most unique, Goodfellow wines.
But in the E&R write up there is a somewhat bold statement that has little proof behind it. Not spraying sulfur in the vineyard is a luxury of isolation. But there’s little proof that spraying sulfur shortens the lifespan of grapes. Old vines all around the world show a lack of proof of this.
Whereas not addressing powdery mildew is highly unlikely to add to longevity. Powdery mildew doesn’t cause a plant to die, but it absolutely inhibits it ability to function at optimal health, in addition to producing sub-par fruit or wrecking the ability to harvest fruit at all.
In the write up, they comment that some of Tai-Ran’s vines are dying already. I’m a believer in not obliterating the Darwinian process in vine selection, and replanting with massale grafts of healthy or vigorous plants is an intelligent action. But he should also consider that competition from the vineyard ground cover in Oregon is a heavy load for young vines to bear. Adding in mildew will simply add challenges to the health and ability of his vines to compete, and probably more will die. The opposite of longevity, though this is just my opinion.
And when, or if, powdery mildew gets a foothold, the spore counts will increase and the severity of the issue will rise significantly. To some extent, the Fukuoka idea is similar to ideas about vaccines. And for a man stranded on a desert island, vaccines may not be the best choice but historically this isn’t true in village or city life.
Most of all, this experiment is still a work in progress and too often I am seeing “papers” written as if it has succeeded, rather than being a hoped for desire. I’ve seen the loss of crops that come with powdery mildew outbreaks, and it can be absolutely devastating.
I really enjoy the intelligence of many of the people that Tai-Ran and E&R listen to and cite. But the vineyard managers should post how many acres and times they have lost blocks, acres, or vineyards to mildew(and it has happened), and it should be noted that while Lingua Franca’s wines are quite good, they also sold out to Constellation, opening the door to the Sith invading Oregon. Constellation also being reknowned for their focus on ecological farming choices…
While I am sure Constellation would have showed up somewhere, it’s a bit frustrating that if turned out to be through the two most heralded outsiders in our industry, Larry Stone and Dominique Lafon. I would have guessed them smart enough to avoid that, especially after working with Tarlov.
Rant over…back to great Oregon Chardonnays.