Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/40315
Grapes Attention Wenatchee Area Growers G.S. Long Co. of Wenatchee, LLC has purchased Cascade Distributing Co. G.S. Long Co. of Wenatchee, LLC is affiliated with G.S. Long Co., Inc. of Yakima which has been serving tree fruit, hop, and vineyard growers since 1980. They look forward to providing the same high level of reliable service and crop supplies to growers from the Wenatchee Valley to the Canadian Border. "We plan on using existing staff and resources to promote the ground up expectations our customers depend on and use this platform to add value going forward for our customers and partnerships." Brad Long Vice President, G.S. Long Co., Inc. The wine is expected to find its strongest support among young, as-yet-unsophisticated wine drinkers. Bordelon has looked for a signature grape for several years. Chambourcin is too late ripening for northern Indi- ana, he said. Chardonel is grown there, but it has shown symptoms of decline after only ten years. Seyval has a very strong tendency to overcrop and to produce large, tight clusters on primary, secondary, and tertiary buds, requiring their removal. Vignoles in the south ripens too early and is subject to fruit rots if it's hot and rainy. Marquette, which is cold hardy and bred in Minnesota, ripens too early and is better suited to cooler climates. "Traminette buds out on average about two weeks later than early varieties such as Foch and Marquette, which helps it avoid frost damage," he said. "Traminette is a little shy on productivity," he added. "Unlike many hybrid varieties, it is not overly fruitful. Cluster thinning is not normally necessary to balance the yield to the vine's vegetative vigor and capacity to ripen the crop." Traminette has been tested in Indiana since 1992, four years before its official release by Cornell University. It was first planted at Geneva in 1968 from seeds; H.C. Barrett, then at Cornell, made the cross when at the University of Illinois. Traminette resulted from a cross between Joannes Seyve 23-416 and Gewürztraminer. Gewürztraminer is not considered reliably cold hardy in the Midwest. The original vines planted in 1992 at Vincennes, Indiana, have shown no decline whatever, Bordelon said. Phylloxera, while it can be found on Traminette roots, has not been a problem. Traminette grows well on its own roots, but can be grafted as well. It is cold hardy enough for Indiana, where winter temperatures rarely fall below –15˚F. Its developers in Geneva, New York, rated it moderately hardy with a predicted 50 percent primary bud kill when winter temperatures fall below –15.3˚F. In one of the promotional fact sheets developed by Jeanette Merritt, Traminette is described as "Indiana's light, fresh, delicate alternative to oaky Chardonnays" and "pleasing to a variety of tastes—winemaking styles can range from seriously dry to lusciously sweet." • www.goodfruit.com Why stop at an apple a day? Employee Benefits from Kibble & Prentice You deserve an insurance broker who works as hard as you do. Professionals at Kibble & Prentice specialize in building healthy benefits plans for your business, and focus on communicating changing laws to keep you compliant. Our popular Benefits Resource Center handles your employees' benefit inquiries, reducing the burden on your HR department. Contact us for a consultation. Employee Benefits · Commercial Insurance · Succession Planning · Retirement Plan Services · Private Client Services kpcom.com 800.767.0650 GOOD FRUIT GROWER SEPTEMBER 2011 29 indiana wine grape council