Winter Grape-Whines: Cold Wave In North Karnataka Turns Grapes Sour Making Them Unfit For Wine Or Dry Fruits

Cold wave across parts of northern Karnataka has left hundreds of grape cultivators worried as the crop is turning sour due to the falling temperature. More than 5,000 farmers in 16 districts of state have taken up grape cultivation.

Due to the cold wave, sugar content has been squeezed out of the crop, turning them sour. This has made the grapes unfit for wine or dry fruits, Deccan Herald has reported.

Nearly 70 per cent of the 23,000 hectare crop has suffered losses, the report cited state horticulture department sources as saying. Temperatures have gone as low as four to five degrees celsius.

“Since 2015, for four consecutive years, we have been reeling under severe drought. This time, we were able to safeguard crops with tanker water. But this severe winter has reversed our calculations inflicting even more damage.” president of grape growers’ association Abhayakumar S Nandrekar was quoted in the report as saying.

He said that a majority of the grapes grown in Bagalkot, Vijayapur and Belagavi are sent to Maharashtra for wine production.

“The table-wine grape should have a brix (sugar content) level of 21 to 25%. But the cold conditions have reduced it to a mere 5 to 6%, making it sour.” he said while adding that the grapes can neither be used for wine nor in the dry fruit industry.

“If you supply it to the local market for domestic consumption as fruit, nobody will buy the sour fruit,” he added.