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Creating a Wine Industry from Scratch

North Dakota's wine and grape industry turns 15

 

An aerial look at the Pointe of View Winery highlights the North Dakota landscape. Photo: Courtesy of Jane Peterson

Fargo, N.D.—Until 2001, residents of North Dakota could make wine, but they couldn’t sell it. Jeff and Diane Peterson realized that was about to change, and when the state legislature passed a bill permitting farm wineries, they formed a partnership with another couple and began working on plans to open a winery together. When they received the necessary state and federal permits in 2002, their Pointe of View Winery in Burlington, N.D., west of Minot, became the first licensed winery in the last state in the United States to have a winery.

Jeff Peterson told Wines & Vines that being the first licensed winery in North Dakota “was not something we had considered when we started the winery. We didn't realize it until the TTB tooted our horn for us with an announcement that now the 50th state had a winery.” Journalists started to call Peterson, and stories appeared in the local, regional and national press. “USA Today wanted to do an article about us, and it ran on the front page of their ‘Life’ section,” he said.

Having grown from a place where the only grapes that grew were wild Vitis riparia vines and there were no wineries at the turn of this century, North Dakota today has 13 wineries and 17 vineyards, according to Wines Vines Analytics. Researchers and extension personnel at the North Dakota State University (NDSU) in Fargo recognized both the potential of the grape and wine industry and the challenges of the state’s climate, which includes winter temperatures that can drop below -40° F and the number of growing degree-days can make ripening fruit difficult.

Dr. Harlene Hatterman-Valenti, professor in the department of plant sciences at NDSU and a specialist in high-value crop production, took on the basic project of identifying appropriate grape varieties for North Dakota. In 2006 and 2007, vineyards were planted at research extension centers in five locations across the state: at Minot (north-central), Williston (northwest), Dickinson (southwest), Carrington (east-central), and Langdon (northeast) as well as at the research farm near Fargo. While the 19 varieties planted were primarily cold-hardy selections developed by the pioneering grape breeder Elmer Swenson and at the University of Minnesota, Hatterman-Valenti reported that the goal is “to get grapes with hardiness for North Dakota. We want to breed for grapes hardier than Marquette and with lower acids than Frontenac.”

Utilizing a germ plasm enhancement program, Hatterman-Valenti has planted as many as 5,000 seedlings per year. Riparia serves as the base variety in the crosses, and the researcher is looking for grapes that can handle not only very cold temperatures but N.D.’s abrupt weather changes. She noted that currently she has a dozen advanced selections and now wants to get an increase in crop levels so that they can make a larger quantity of wine for evaluation.

First-ever NDSU vineyard tour and tasting
On June 8, the public was invited to the university’s vineyard for a tour and tasting that started in the field for a discussion of breeding techniques and then went to the Plant Sciences Greenhouse, where crosses are made year round. The tasting half of the program at the NDSU Alumni Center featured a sensory evaluation designed to show differences in wine from under-ripe and over-ripe Brianna grapes.

While the university is not yet offering courses in viticulture or enology, they now have a wine-appreciation course.

The N.D. industry today
According to Peterson, it’s easier to operate a winery now than it was 15 years ago. Gradually laws have been passed that allow wineries to self-distribute and go off-site for tasting and sales events 20 times per year. The North Dakota Department of Agriculture holds six “Pride of Dakota” shows every year to promote North Dakota products, attracting as many as 15,000 people. “Those shows have been very good for us,” Peterson said.

Most of the state’s wineries have joined the North Dakota Grape and Wine Association, which has been instrumental in securing state funding for NDSU’s grape-breeding program and achieving other legislative changes such as the self-distribution legislation. So far there is no wine trail in the state, in part because there can be 70 to 80 miles between wineries.

Peterson continues to be optimistic about the fire of grapes and wine in this challenging environment. “We have some varieties ready to be patented,” he stated. “That will help other states that are cold, as well as North Dakota.”