Good Grapes for This Climate

[merse]

I'm looking at starting a new vineyard here in the Texas Panhandle, but from my research I can't land on a good type of grape.
The climate here is very hot in the summer, tops 100F regularly and cold in the winter, which can reach the single digits. I'm not sure how early grapes will bloom, but the last frost in the spring is usually in early to mid April.

The soil is slightly alkaline with a normal pH of around 7.5-8.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

 

[grapeman]

Hopefully somebody will chime in and help you out. The conditions you decribe are pretty inhospitable to normal grapes. Your best bet may be to locate a vineyard in your area if one exists and ask them. They will have made some mistakes figuring out what will work. Learn from them and shorten your learning curve.

Best of luck to you in your quest!

 

[Brew and Wine Supply]

Contact a local nursery and ask them what type of grapes grow in the area. Also find local winerys and see what they are growing and do the same.
Good luck!

 

[merse]

Thanks for the advice. Although it's not looking too promising!

 

[Brew and Wine Supply]

Grapes are growen in all 50 states, keep looking.

 

[ibglowin]

I know they are growing grapes (vinifera noble) successfully in the Lubbock, TX area as well as in West TX (Fort Stockton). Check out Cap Rock and Llano Estacado wineries. These areas are indeed hot but generally for the most part they are over the "dry line" and much less humid than other parts of TX so less amounts of disease pressure than the rest of TX.

Check out:

http://www.txwines.org/region1/wineries.asp

 

[UBB]

I'm looking at starting a new vineyard here in the Texas Panhandle, but from my research I can't land on a good type of grape.
The climate here is very hot in the summer, tops 100F regularly and cold in the winter, which can reach the single digits. I'm not sure how early grapes will bloom, but the last frost in the spring is usually in early to mid April.

The soil is slightly alkaline with a normal pH of around 7.5-8.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

I'm sorry but that part made me laugh a bit!

 

[Jah_Son]

Black Spanish, Favorite, Blanc du Bois, Villard Blanc, and Munson varieties are the "usual suspects" in most of Texas. Not sure if PD is a problem where you are, but if so, those are your go-to's.

 

[merse]

Going to check the local wineries and see what they grow.
PD is not a problem here from what I've read, although it could just be from lack of data.

Any thoughts on the Malbec? From what I can tell, it prefers a cooler climate which due to the cool spring lasting into late April could possibly do well here

 

[blumentopferde]

I've googled a climate chart and your climate seems very suitable for grapes.
Malbec shoots early. If there are still frosts in April that might be risky. Apart from that another limiting factor might be winter low temperatures. Don't know how winter hardy Malbec is (actually I don't know of any source that would describe winter hardiness of grape varieties), but any winter hardy variety should be fine!