Oct 12, 2008 - 04:05:22 CDT
HAYMARSH - A picturesque harvest in the Haymarsh valley northeast of Hebron will soon turn into wine.Ken and Mary Ann Duppong harvested about 300 pounds of luscious grapes from their vineyard on a sunny autumn day, the heavy purple clusters the fruit of their hopes and their hard labor.
For help, they invited in a small crew of "migrants," friends from Rhame and Regent, who left with purple stains on their hands, tired children and smiles on their faces.
The grapes were a thing of beauty hidden among green leaves big as dinner plates and hanging from twisty vines - all the more beautiful because they're so exotic for North Dakota.
Yet, the Duppongs' vineyards are proof they can grow here, especially if the stock is carefully chosen from among many "cold hardy" species developed and bred for this climate primarily at the University of Minnesota.
Heaped into buckets, the grapes release a sweet delicate perfume into the air after the picking.
The Duppongs had hoped for a more bountiful crop, but their vineyard is relatively young and each year is better than the last.
"It's the funnest thing I've ever grown," said Ken Duppong.
He's an old hand at wresting hay and grain from the fields and hills of the Haymarsh valley, where the steeple of St. Clement's Catholic Church is a landmark of the old pioneer settlement.
He's a newer hand and better every year at caring for grape crops.
Mary Ann Duppong said she loves their vineyards, the two more established plantings near the farmhouse and the newest two across the road that are small and not yet the best advertisement for a successful vineyard.
She loves them for a couple of reasons.
"Number one, they're green and they make you feel like you're cool. Second, I love picking the fruit in big clusters and not having to search for one here and one there, like with Juneberries," she said.
By "green," she means organic; no chemicals, just well water dripped weekly from an irrigation system, careful pruning and netting, and some organic spray against birds and deer.
The Duppongs started small back in 2003, with 48 plants in six plots. They now have 1,400 plants, with names like Frontenac, Blue Bells, Valiant, King of the North, Swenson Red, Kay Gray and more.
Ken Duppong said the idea is to keep experimenting with varieties.
"Each year we'll add to it, with more varieties, more plants and figure out what to do," he said.
Growing grapes involves more than sticking vine roots in the ground.
The bare root plants must be staked and eventually supported by sturdy trellises that carry the vines horizontally as well as lines of irrigation hose and a drip nozzle above the base of each plant.
Two of their "migrant" day workers were Scott and Katie Nasset, of rural Regent, who own a Subway store in Dickinson and experiment with fruit winemaking from apricots, apples and blueberries at home.
They hoped by spending a day with the Duppongs to move closer to their dream of planting some acreage around their house into the distinct rows that make the Dakota prairie at Duppongs' look like Napa Valley.
Mary Ann Duppong said if she could have one wish, at least in relation to the vineyards, it would be this: "I wish I were their age, 30 years younger" she said of the Nassets. With an interest in vineyards and grapes, there are so many new roads to travel and so many people who travel the road to their house to talk and learn, she said.
By late afternoon and on into the wee hours, the Duppongs were sorting grapes into a hand-crank rotary press that destemed and crushed them for winemaking.
Last year, their grapes yielded 15 gallons of wine. They hope for twice as many this year.
Mary Ann Duppong says they envision their own label and enough production to supply communion and other wines. Any eventual profit would come from selling wine, not bulk grape sales to another winery for this year's rate of $1.25 a pound.
Ken Duppong said the same principle applies to growing a successful vineyard and bottling a successful wine.
"It's a learning experience. Some grapes can be blended, but I've found out it's best to make the wine and then blend it," he said. He pours out small sample glasses and the densely flavored wine probes the palate like a musty port.
Mary Ann Duppong manages her farmyard as an oasis of lush grass, fruit and shade trees and flower and vegetable gardens, with the first of their vineyards tucked into a large sunny corner.
It is all work of the kind that nourishes body and soul.
To become a vintner, like the Duppongs, requires one main attribute.
"You've got to like to get your hands dirty," she said.
(Reach reporter Lauren Donovan at 888-303-5511 or lauren@;westriv.com.)
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