Farmers turn hobby into grape-growing business

WATERLOO - There are easier ways to make money off Iowa's fertile soil.

Patti Schmitz and her husband, Rich, have invested hundreds of dollars and waited three years for what they hope will be their first grape harvest this fall. The couple planted an acre of grapes on their property northeast of Waterloo in 2007.

The couple's vineyard, named Vito's Vineyard for Patti's great-grandfather, is the only grape-producing vineyard in Black Hawk County. The vineyard consists of mostly Marechal Foch grapes, a hybrid cold-weather variety, along with a few vines of some hybrids from New York.

The couple chose the variety because they like the flavors of wines it can make. It was the couple's love of wine and Rich's hobby of making wine that prompted them to grow their grapes.

"I'm Italian, so, of course, we have to drink wine at every meal," Patti Schmitz said.

Wine making and grape-growing are gaining popularity throughout Iowa. At the beginning of the decade, the state had five vineyards and 15 acres of grapevines. Today, 412 vineyards call Iowa home and 1,200 acres of land are devoted to grapes, state viticulturist Mike White said.

Despite the surge in production, Patti Schmitz said acquiring grapes for their winemaking hobby was becoming difficult. They decided to grow their own and sell what they didn't use to area wineries.

"There are quite a few wineries that use this grape for some of their wines," Patti Schmitz said.

The couple sacrificed an acre of corn and soybeans, hired a specialized equipment operator to pound wooden posts into the ground and bought more than 100 starter vines.

Their crop would be reaching maturity this year had a tornado not ripped through their property and destroyed their home May 25 last year.

Most of their vines survived, but some had their taller growth ripped away by the high winds. Later in the season, an infestation of Japanese beetles devoured some of the vines.

Patti Schmitz said she is ready to fight them off this year but had higher priorities to tackle last year.

"This took a second seat to the house," she said.

She expects to spend hundreds of hours during the growing season walking through the rows of vines, applying antifungal spray, pruning and managing the vineyard's canopy. She recently worked to straighten some growths that came loose from their frames after more severe weather.

Her efforts can pay off, Iowa State Extension office officials say.

"It's really developed into a whole industry in Iowa," said Al Ricks of the Iowa State Extension office in Black Hawk County.

An acre of grapes can produce up to 3 tons of grapes. A ton of grapes can bring a price of about $1,000 for a total of around $3,000 per acre, White said. Corn, at $4 a bushel, would bring $600 based on a production rate of 150 bushels per acre.

The labor and initial cost, however, can deter would-be grape producers, White said.

"Most of these people do it for passion," White said. "It's an advocation instead of regular employment."

The Schmitzes don't have a winemaking license. Their production will be limited to a few bottles for family and close friends - the same circle of people they are counting on to help harvest their first crop in September.

The family will add to what White says is a growing industry with an appetite for more Iowa-grown grapes. Iowa wine accounts for 5 percent of the wine consumed in Iowa, White said.

"It's going to get bigger," he said. "No doubt about it."

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