Buchler Named Viticulturist of the Year By Tom Walker Hans Buchler of Oliver, who grows grapes for Summerhill Pyramid Winery, has been named the BC Grapegrowers Association’s 2021 Viticulturist of the Year. Buchler and Stephen Cipes, proprietor of Summerhill Pyramid Winery, marked the occasion with fellow grapegrowers and scientists with AAFC Summerland Research and Development Center (SURDC). Buchler is a legend in the industry, having spent four decades in the grape growing industry, and Cipes was pouring wine and telling stories of Buchler’s uncanny ability with his grapes.
Buchler has farmed his 30-acre Parkhill Vineyard tucked amongst the rocky knolls of McIntyre Bluffs, northwest of Oliver, since 1982. His pioneering organic practices led him to a long-term contract with the organic vintners at Summerhill. That award-winning quality is what the BCGA is looking for when they consider nominations for the award, explains John Bayley, president of the BCGA. “This award was developed to celebrate the growers in our industry who are pushing forward the quality of fruit while also being a present and positive member of the grape growing industry,” said Bayley, who is also the vineyard manager at Blasted Church.
Photo by Tom Walker
“The wine we are drinking today, Cipes Brut, is the single most awarded wine in Canada,” Cipes told the crowd. “It has never not won a gold medal since it was introduced in 1991. Hans is the man who grows the grapes and 80 per cent of the credit for the wine goes to him.”
Hans Buchler (left) and John Bayley at the ceremony for the BCGGA 2021 Viticulturist of the Year
“It was designed to highlight those growers that produce the top-quality grapes that go into making BC’s best wines.” A pioneer in organic practices in the valley, Buchler says his vineyard has been a work in progress over the past 40 years, “This was raw land that had never been irrigated before,” he explained. “The organic matter in the soil was one per cent and not really much nutrition available, so the establishment of the vineyard was a long haul.” But he is happy with the results. “I have
brought the vineyard to the point where it is self-sustaining in terms of inputs,” Buchler said. “Over the last several years I have not had to add any additional nutrients to the soil.” Cover crops are a key, he says. “The cover crop of mostly vetch is established to the point where it provides the nutrients that the vines need,” Buchler says. It’s a system that he would like to see practiced at other sites across the valley. “We have really no other input in terms of nutrition.” he explains. “I would love to see this system tried in different areas in BC.
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