Frigid temperatures yield sweet wine reward

PESHASTIN — Little bits of ice formed under Kate Berschauer’s nose as she harvested grapes in a snow-covered Peshastin vineyard Monday morning.

It takes an Artic blast like the one that rolled through Monday to freeze the vapor in breath and to freeze grapes thoroughly enough to make ice wine, an ambrosial dessert drink. When the temperature dips to the mid-teens, the water in the grapes freezes solid but the sugars don’t. When pressed, the frozen grapes yield an unadulterated, super-sweet nectar.

When’s the right time to harvest ice wine grapes?

“When it’s 15 degrees out and no one wants to talk to me,” said Icicle Ridge Winery owner Louie Wagoner. Despite the frigid cold, Wagoner managed to gather a lively picking team.

“They went through like a vacuum cleaner,” he joked. “They’re all looking for a free bottle of wine."

“It’s gorgeous out,” said Berschauer, 31, of Leavenworth, as she worked the vines, clipping off bunches of frozen-solid grapes. She got word early in the morning that Monday would be the day for picking and she was out in the frosty vineyard by 8 a.m. “It’s great to be outside.”

Matt Hall, 20, and Danny Larose, 23, both of Leavenworth, took on the picking work while waiting for their regular jobs as “lifties,” chair-lift attendants, at Stevens Pass to start up later this week.

“So far, it’s chillin’,” Larose said. “There’s fresh air and good people.”

This is the fourth year Wagoner has made ice wine. Most ice wine comes from eastern Canada and Germany. Wagoner said after doing research and talking to experts, he figures his spot is a good one to grow primo ice wine grapes.

“It’s a big gamble,” he said, noting the many calamities that can befall the delicate fruits when left on the vine so long. Getting ice wine just right is a trick. “We either make a great ice wine or a hell of a lot of raisin wine,” he said.

The ice wine made from the grapes picked Monday should be ready next spring.