Reading over the wine grape harvest reports from various Midwest grape growing regions, it’s apparent that the Lake Erie shore between Cleveland and the Pennsylvania border had the most severe losses. As reported in the Ashtabula Star Beacon, there will be little, if any, 2014 vintage in the Lake Erie Ohio AVA’s.
See: Senator Visits Wine Country to Assess Polar Vortex Damage
Mark Ganchiff
Mark Ganchiff is the publisher of Midwest Wine Press, the leading source of news on the growing wine industry in the central United States. Mark has been a wine judge at the 2012 and 2014 INDY International Wine Competition, the 2014 Cold Climate Wine Competition, the 2013 Mid-American Wine Competition, the 2012 Illinois State Fair Wine Competition and the 2013 Michigan Wine Competition. He also enjoys speaking at wine events including the Cold Climate Wine Conference, the Illinois Grape Growers and Vintners Association Annual Meeting, the Midwest Grape and Wine Conference and the Wisconsin Fruit and Vegetable Conference. Mark's articles about regional wine have appeared in Vineyard & Winery Management, WineMaker and several regional magazines. Mark is a Level One Sommelier in the Court of Master Sommeliers. He lives in Louisville, but also has a residence in Chicago.
Mark – Interesting post, but notice that the article used the term “wine grapes” to refer only to pure vinifera varieties(Riesling, Cab Franc, etc). What the article didn’t mention is that there is still a LOT of wine being made from hybrids and native varieties. The hybrid varieties(Vidal, Traminette, Frontenac etc) suffered much less damage and will have a crop, as will the “natives”(Concord, Niagara, Catawba).