The Demystified Vine

Lunessence Winery in Summerland, BC, is starting to gain some traction in the local wine world. Their motto, “Harmony, from vine to wine”, plays close attention to wine making from the dirt up. As the winery is experimenting with classical music being broadcast throughout the vineyard, Lunessence is utilizing alternative methods, shall we say, to influence what goes into bottle. Their belief: that classical music provides positive effects to the grapes via the sound vibrations and frequencies of, arguably, the most complex music on the planet.

Interestingly Enough…

To make things even more specific, Lunessence is not broadcasting just any classical music. The “chosen ones” include operas composed by Verdi, Mozart, Rossini, Leoncavallo, and others.

Now, before you judge or scoff at the idea, I have to let you in on a secret. While I cannot link you to the exact experiments, it has been proven that listening to classical music while studying can increase your understanding of material thus leading to higher grades in school.

According to an article published in USC News (https://news.usc.edu/71969/studying-for-finals-let-classical-music-help/), “University research in France, published in Learning and Individual Differences, found that students who listened to a one-hour lecture where classical music was played in the background scored significantly higher in a quiz on the lecture when compared to a similar group of students who heard the lecture with no music.” Being a teacher, I will support any theory that would help students be better students! So, if grapes are the students of the land, play on Mozart!

The Land

Summerland, BC, is rife with a variety of soil compositions, and Lunessence’s estate vineyard is situated on ancient bedrock. Giant’s Head Mountain is not far off from the site, and this particular mountain is known to locals to be an ancient volcano. Volcanic soils tend to impart favourable characteristics to a wine’s profile, and if you are a wine lover who enjoys minerality, volcanic soils might be your thing. Think Sicilian wines; vino from around the Mt. Etna area are bursting with terroir influence.

Viticultural Practices

Lunessence Winery & Vineyard is practicing sustainable viticulture. While not yet fully biodynamic, the vineyard is becoming more closely tied to organic practices, putting an emphasis on not harming the locale of what lovely things may be living around them. The goal, as stated in their winery pamphlet, is to “find balanced energy within both ourselves and our vineyard”.

Click here to learn more about the wines: Lunessence Winery & Vineyard Wine Profiles

Cheers!

The Demystified Vine