When it comes to wine, the world’s top producers are Spain, France, United States, China, Argentina, Chile, Australia, South Africa, Germany, Portugal, Romania, Greece, Russia, New Zealand, Brazil, Hungary, Austria, Serbia, and Moldova.
Atty. Ferdinand Taglucop, who is from Davao City, wants to add the Philippines to the list. Whether you are a wine connoisseur, wine student, or wine enthusiast, wine maps are the most useful tool to explore and understand wine countries, regions, and subregions.
“With proper knowledge and training on oenology and viticulture, I do not doubt that we can make really interesting wines from the Philippines,” said Taglucop, who is not just a lawyer but also a farmer entrepreneur.
Oenology refers to the scientific study and examination of wine and the processes involved in its production, whereas viticulture pertains to the science of grape cultivation, growth, and harvesting. Wine itself is an alcoholic drink produced through the fermentation of the juice derived specifically from grapes.
The Philippines has no wine to speak of – although there are many fruits – mangoes, bananas, pineapple, papayas, and bignay, among others – that can be made into wine. The country is also noted for basi, a sugarcane wine. Then, there’s bahalina, a traditional wine from fermented coconut that has been aged for several months.
Taglucop, who has been to different wineries all over the world, still dreams that one day the Philippines could produce its own brand of wine which will be famous globally.
“I really think so,” he replied when asked if the Philippines could produce wines that could be at par with those wines from other countries. “If we have the same education or knowledge, same grape varieties, same equipment, same kind of barrels, etc., I think we can make the same quality wines as well. The difference in our growing conditions or terroir is a plus factor as they will all the more be interested to taste our wines for being peculiar.”
He knows what he is talking about as he grows grapes. His 3.5 hectare vineyard – Taglucop Estates Vineyard and Winery – is in barangay Tacunan in Tugbok District. An agricultural engineering graduate before he pursued becoming a lawyer, he started growing grapes as a hobby almost a decade ago.
“In my travels, I have always been fascinated with the culture and lifestyle in the vineyard settings,” said Taglucop, who happens to be married to Jenny, a travel agent. “No particular person inspired me. It’s the thought of walking the vineyards and making pure and unadulterated wines from it that keeps me dreaming.”
Taglucop conducted research into grape growing within the country and discovered that only a small number of Filipinos are engaged in this practice. When grapes are cultivated, the primary aim is for table consumption rather than for winemaking.
Because of this, he started growing grapes as a hobby during weekends. He planted mostly seedless table grapes and wine varieties on his farm. “In the beginning, my sources of planting materials were local,” he said.
Taglucop found out that not all grapes are created equal. Some varieties could not be eaten as they were sour. There were sweet varieties but the fruits they produced were few and in-between. Others were attacked by pests and diseases.
All these were the reasons, he believed, why most of those who planted grapes didn’t prosper and discontinued what they had started.
Despite all these obstacles, he persisted. He studied the right ways to grow grapes through readings on the internet. Every time he and his wife went out of the country, he sourced some seeds and cuttings. He experimented with various varieties of grapes – from temperate to semi-temperate countries.
Taglucop planted them – about 60 varieties all in all – in his farm. Not all of those he planted thrived well. One by one, he eliminated those varieties which don’t grow well, don’t produce enough fruits, or whose fruits are sour. Varieties that could not survive the tropical climate were also discarded along with those susceptible to pests and diseases.
Growing grapes is easy in theory. But in reality, it is difficult. In fact, after eight years, he still keeps on experimenting. According to him, he plants the seedlings around one-foot deep. “The roots of full-grown vines can go as deep as 15 feet although most of the roots grow up in the top three feet of soil,” he said.
Since grapes are creeping plants (vines), they have to be provided with trellis. For him, the easiest and most economical trellis to construct and maintain is vertical shoot positioning (VSP) with four wires, 8 feet above the ground and is well anchored on each end. In the VSP system, the vine shoots are trained upward in a vertical, narrow curtain with the fruiting zone below.
From planting up to around one year and before the first pruning to make the vines bear fruits, he fertilizes his grape vines with complete fertilizer (14-14-14) and calcium nitrate plus supplementary micronutrients. Fertilization, a necessity in growing grapes, is done every month.
Atty. Taglucop also broadcasts chicken dung and/or vermicast once every six months. “During pruning and fruiting, we fertilize them according to the specific needs of the vines during its phenological stage,” he said. “It is advisable to take a leaf, petiole or at least soil sample to optimize inputs.”
Like most crops, grapes need water. If there is no rain for a week, he irrigates the crop twice. “But considering that we always have rain events at least twice a week, we don’t irrigate our grapes most of the time,” he said.
He harvests grapes twice a year. From his fully-grown mature vines, he is able to get 5-10 kilograms. “We have grape picking activity during harvest,” he said.
Grapevines must be pruned every year to remain fruitful. Depending on the weather, he prunes the grapes at least one month after harvesting. “We don’t want to prune during rainy days because of possible fungal/bacterial/viral infection on freshly cut canes,” he said. “Rain events are also not good during the flowering stage and harvesting season.”
The cuttings after pruning are used for seedling propagation. Cuttings from diseased or infected vines are discarded. “We cut the canes to 3-4 nodes, bundle them in 20s to 30s, soak them in water with small fungicide and chlorine to sanitize and bury them in river sand,” he said.
The cuttings are taken out from where they were buried out once they have already been rooted. “That is the time we bag them separately,” he said, adding that the size of the bag is 6-8 inches by 12-14 inches.
Before they can be transplanted in the field, the seedlings are exposed to morning sunlight only within 20 days. “After that, they are exposed to 75% sunlight for the next two months or so. Then to full sunlight at least one month before they are transferred to the field,” he said.
Taglucop admitted that he started growing grapes as a hobby albeit with an eye on farm tourism. “But the big dream is really the winery because that’s the main thing in other countries,” he said.
After eight years of experimenting and trials, he found seven world renowned varieties of grapes that have good potential for production and making quality wines in his area. Not necessarily in the order, these are: Shiraz (from Australia), Moldova (from Ukraine), Chardonnay and Petite Syrah (from France), Freisa (from Italy), Moscato (from Israel), and Chenin Blanc (sourced from Gran Monte, Thailand). He also has this sweet and aromatic variety which he called Davao Delicious from a Muscat variety parentage.
But what challenges him most is the “perfect” wine from the grapes. “A good wine in one that is not adulterated (no magic ingredients), has no detectible flaws (no vinegar smell, etc.) and reflects the terroir of the place it is grown,” he explained. “Quality starts from the vineyard and ends in the bottle. You cannot make good wines from bad grapes but you can make bad wine from good grapes if you are not educated and skilled in making wine.
Taglucop believed “we can produce very interesting wines from the grapes grown in our unique and archipelagic terroir with a very challenging climate.”
On being unique, he explained, “You seldom see a vineyard planted on volcanic soil laden with coral rocks (limestone); showered with high humidity but also tempered with high incidence of sunlight of the tropics; constantly kissed by the gentle and alkaline (controls fungus) breeze coming from the Pacific Ocean in the east, West Philippine sea in the west, Celebes Sea in the South; more importantly, a vineyard that is planted in one of the Islands but surrounded with more than 7,000 more Islands in the Philippines. Wines produced here might be worth trying.”
The grapes grown on his farm are mainly for wine (although some of them can be eaten). “Wine making starts with harvesting the grapes at the optimum time: right brix (sweetness), right acidity and right flavor,” he said.
The harvested grapes are processed into wine within five hours from harvest to optimize flavors. “Only the full-ripe and undamaged grapes are processed into wine,” he said.
After the grapes are harvested, they are transported to its winery, sorted for quality grapes then crushed and de-stemmed.
For red wine, the crushed grapes (juice, skins, flesh and seeds) are fermented for two weeks. These are pressed afterwards and aged in barrels for six to 12 months. After that, they are filtered and bottled.
For white wine, the crushed grapes are immediately pressed, fermented without skins, seeds, and pulps for two weeks or so. These are aged in stainless steel for at least six months and then filtered and bottled.
Right now, one of his dreams is to put up a restaurant, cellar doors/wine tasting rooms in the middle of his vineyard in Tacunan. “Guests and visitors can stroll, harvest grapes, do grape stomping, do wine-tasting and food pairing, dine, chill and experience vineyard feels without necessarily going out of the country,” he said. “Hopefully, this dream can be materialized soon.”
With a postgraduate Certificate Course on Winemaking and Viticulture from University of California-Davis, he is confident to produce some of the country’s best wines.
When asked what makes grape growing and wine making challenging, he replied: “Our weather remains the main challenge to grape growing and wine making. In a humid and rainy environment like ours, fungus thrives. If not properly dealt with, quality grapes will never be had; worse, the whole vineyard will possibly be wiped out.
“Furthermore, resources or information on grape growing and even proper education, technology and proper planting materials are not available here,” he added. “It is really challenging. So, we need to be resourceful.”
Taglucop believed grape growing and wine making were highly intertwined. “As the saying goes, ‘One cannot make good wines from bad grapes.’ In a similar manner, ‘One can make bad wines from good grapes.’ So, it is important to study not only on how to grow grapes but also on making wine – the proper unadulterated wines that we all can be proud of.”
Aside from the 3.5-hectare farm in Tacunan, Davao City, he is also growing grapes in a 10-hectare farm in barangay Kipilas in Kitaotao, Bukidnon.
“In God’s time, we may start a small harvest next year,” he said. “This will support the winery in Davao. Who knows, it may become another winery site in the future if God will allow it.”
