2009 SEASON — Eighth Harvest

Here we go... The tenth leaf of the vineyard, and the cold, mostly dry December weather allowed pruning to begin with the permanent two-man crew. Four short fruiting canes were chosen, each vine evaluated for cane growth dominance and the number of buds needed to balance fruit/canopy, encouraging complex structured flavors for wine. To quote Fred, "You can't prune to a devigored state." Each vine tells what it needs.

We want a little more rain, no frost, a good fruit set and temperate weather until veraison when the berries turn color. The harvest date means nothing without the date of veraison. What counts is between them. With buds bursting earlier than most other vineyards in the Russian River Valley, and earlier veraison, there is plenty of time for canes to lignify, and for berries to develop all of their phenolics and ripen tannins — longer hang-time, earlier.

But not too early. As of the first of February, buds were pushing, and it was still too cold at night for them. With enough days over 59 degrees, shoots start to un-whirl, putting them at risk on frosty nights. But soon after, and into March, a welcome rainy spell kept them under wrap. With a second new automatic wind machine placed in the vineyard for frost protection we were ready as could be, and the third week in March brought leaves and flower clusters, later than ever before.

Fred busied himself with a flurry of tractor work, and the crew increased to ten in April, thinning shoots to balance plants. Flower clusters survived a few frosty mornings with the wind machines chopping away, and a late May rain, which invigorated everything in the Russian River Valley. Bloom is a favorite time, its white honey perfume permeating the whole vineyard before berries start to form—the same date as last year.

The fruit set well at about 50 to 60% and now the crew traverses the vineyard, starting over when they're done, and increasing to six in early June for the up-down cane positioning of the tall, thin canopy while the green berries swell. The first week in July and the summer has been mild. We see a bit of color, the beginning of veraison. By the end of the month they've turned.

In middle August, with warmer days, two in the 90's, we readied  for harvest. Count 55 to 60 days from veraison and sure enough harvest began on September 8—and continued through... 

No way! A thunderstorm?

In the middle of the night, September 12. Beautiful to watch, but the accompanying showers, not so much. The last 3.5 acres of fruit are still hanging. Saturday morning everything has dried but we still watch the sky, hoping these dark clouds pass on through, knowing they probably won't.

They didn't. Nonetheless, after a tenth inch of rain and a week to dry, all the fruit was off the vines as of September 19 and looking good. Now we relax.

2009—a good year to be an early vineyard. Here come the winter rains.  

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Harvest Photos

Spring Weather  — Cane pruned 114 vine in the rain

The Good Parts  — A gorgeous sunset from the office

What's Ahead — Dorothy's block from Home