Hello,
After 12 years
years of doing this, I have come to the conclusion that Pinot Noir vines are
diurnal and Mother Nature is bipolar. And as a Pinot Noir grower, I am fairly
confident she is a redhead. Yeah, she's that kinda girl. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_hair
But it's all good, and we will take what we have been offered
until we run out of growing season. The canopy is finally up and the third wires
are clipped into place. I have been able to make a single hedging/mowing pass in
July and now await for the newfound shoot tips to stick their heads out for a
second pass. The suckers are all gone and so are some of the leaves. We will
finish leaf pull promptly and await lag phase.
Contrary to the name, lag phase is a very busy time. This is
the point of the berry development where the seed "hardens off." We know this is
happening when we try and push through the berry with a thumbnail, and find the
seed will not easily split. When we find this condition in the vineyard, Ernie
gets out the scale, green eyeshade and a calculator. He is dialing in the crop
load, block by block, for 34 blocks. It's working so far. Please follow this
link for our latest reviews from Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar: Amalie
Robert Estate Earns Top Score for 2007 Pinot Noir!
Lag phase provides an early warning mechanism to determine the
final cluster weights and tons available for harvest. Not that we get to harvest
it all. The birds, deer and other nefarious creatures all take their cut. We
know that most blocks in the vineyard will see the cluster weight double in
weight from lag phase to harvest. This is a multiplier of 2.0. Some blocks, due
to clone, rootstock or available soil moisture, have a multiplier closer to 2.2,
and others as low as 1.8. Note: this is not to be confused with the current
experiment going on in Washington DC regarding the Keynesian
multiplier.
Ernie takes a representative sample from each and every block.
He counts the number of clusters on the vine, and then takes one cluster for a
sample. He cuts the wings off and weighs the de-winged clusters to determine our
current "tons per acre." His goal is to make one bottle of wine per vine. When
the dust settles, Ernie has a plan by block for the number of clusters to cut
off each vine. It is a bittersweet moment.
The idea is that each cluster that is left will be better able
to survive the winter and reproduce in the Spring. No wait, that is survival of
the fittest - sorry. What we are really doing is concentrating our Pinot flavors
in the vineyard. The removal of wings is also a standard practice that keeps the
green/unripe flavors out of our wines.
That is just about enough drivel. Where are the numbers?! Paint
me a picture, give me the data!
We have recorded about 464 degree days for the month of July, providing a
total of 798 degree days since the beginning of the growing season on April
1st. This compares with 532 degree days last July and a comparative total
of 1,100 degree days for 2009 (a bit light in the loafers we are this year), 993
degree days in 2008, and 1,054 degree days for 2007. In 2006 we had accumulated
1,246 degree days through the end of July.
Hmmm, that is 798 this year, 1,100, 993, 1,054 and 1,246 degree days for
July the last 4 years. That can only mean one thing. As Mother Nature winds down
the growing season we will see a very warm August, temperate September, and a
long, dry, cool October. Yeah, that's my kinda girl. http://www.amalierobert.com/winery_soil_profile.htm
During
July, our highest high was 99.4 and our lowest high was 93.2. Our lowest low was
42.5 and our highest low was 44.7 degrees Fahrenheit. The rainfall for July was
a meager 0.10 inches and was 0.83 inches below last July's rain of 0.93.
Rainfall since April 1st through July 31st was 13.03, and is 5.10 inches more
than last year's growing season to date rainfall of 7.93 inches.
So, there it is. We are older, colder, and gonna be late. I
think I will start looking for a new hat.
Kindest Regards,
Ernie
