As soon as conditions are perfect, a call goes out to Cindy’s corps of volunteer pickers who venture out into the sub-freezing cold, usually in the dark, to pick ice-wine grapes each year. The grapes must be frozen on the vines and harvested at a maximum temperature of -10 celsius. Like most Grand River Wineries, Grand River uses the exacting Canadian Vintners Quality Alliance standards for ice wine. ‘He’ll tell us, `Looks like we’ll be picking in two days.’ Sometimes it’s a very small window.” ‘Our vineyard manager watches the weather and tries to predict when the grapes will be frozen,” Cindy Lindberg says. on January 2 nd and finished early the next morning. Grand River Cellars started picking the Vidal Blanc grapes for their ice wine at about 10 p.m. It’s a fine line, but it’s in honor of my mother so I want it to be the best it possibly can be.”Īt Laurello’s tasting, visitors also sampled their 2011 ‘Illuminata,” a floral-tasting, still wine blend of Gewurztraminer, Riesling and Muscat, named after Kimberly’s grandmother. ‘I like some acid in there, to balance the fruit and sweetness. ‘I don’t like very sweet wines,” Kimberly explains. Of the three wines we tasted, Laurello’s was the driest, with hints of pecans and raisins. Those grapes would eventually become ‘Sweet Genevieve” ice wine, named after Kimberly Laurello’s mother, with residual sugar of less than 17 percent.

The grapes are only picked when they are frozen solid and the temperature reaches 17 degrees or colder then they are pressed immediately before they can begin to thaw.įor the 2011 vintage, Laurello Vineyards picked their Vidal Blanc grapes on December 17. Grapes remain on the vines for months after the harvest ends, waiting for cold weather to set in. Making true ice wine is difficult and risky. The ice wines showcased at the Ice Wine Festival are all authentic ice wines instead of cryogenically frozen “iced” wines. ‘If the grapes can hang long enough, we like to make some ice wine from Cabernet Franc, but Vidal Blanc is more reliable,” she says. Kimberly Laurello, owner of Laurello Vineyards in nearby Geneva, agrees. ‘One year we picked Cabernet Franc in the winter, but the juice wasn’t good enough for making ice wine,” says Cindy Lindberg, president of Grand River Cellars in Madison, whose ice wine has 19.5 percent residual sugar. Vidal Blanc is the grape of choice for Ohio ice wine.

Cindy Lindberg, president of Grand River Cellars

Ice wine festival 2016 ohio