With temperatures soaring back up in the 70’s today, the chill over the weekend already seems a distant memory – except to grape growers across the region.

Near-record high temperatures during April and May lured hibernating grapevines into early budding. With temperatures this past weekend having dropped as low as 27 degrees, the delicate buds were susceptible to freezing, killing many of them off. Some grape growers are in a “wait and see” mode, hoping that secondary buds will appear in the coming weeks while others are already estimating  30-50% crop loss.

This year’s grape crops will affect wines that will be available in 2017.