Summer on the West Coast is no longer just about sun rays, sea spray and beach days. With climate change cooking landscapes everywhere, summertime today spells wildfire season. By the end of July, nearly 5,000 separate blazes across California, Oregon and Washington had already charred more than two million acres—and they’re just getting started.
Ferocious walls of flame are scary enough, but it’s actually the ensuing plumes of smoke that really freak out grape growers and winemakers from Walla Walla to Temecula. That’s because even just a day of wildfire haze can ruin your entire vintage with a condition known as smoke taint.
But help is here in the form of the West Coast Smoke Exposure Task Force. Founded five years ago as a collaboration between on-the-ground vintners and research-minded academics, the task force is studying wildfire smoke’s impact on grapevines, and then publicizing that intel as quickly as possible. Their work will help producers at all points in the winemaking process better prepare for the effects of extreme weather.
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This Article was originally published on Wine Enthusiast
