Hello and Welcome,
This is the Amalie Robert Estate
Climate Update for August 2017. A FLOG communication.
Well, it came and went. The full
solar eclipse cast its shadow of totality right across the vineyard. Some people
wondered what that event would do to the wine berries, so we have posted before
and after images that allow you to assess the full impact - in its totality. Say
what you will, but the vines seemed quite oblivious to the whole event.
Pinot Noir Clusters Before Eclipse
Pinot Noir Clusters After Eclipse
But what should really be
consuming those brain cycles is the impact that leap year has on all of us in
conjunction with those parts of the world that observe daylight savings time,
in particular those that adjust in 30 minute increments. So do we harvest a day
later every 4 years or just 6 hours earlier 3 years out of 4? Maybe a minute
should just be 59 seconds and that would do away with this whole leaping year thing
every 1 in 4.
While you ponder that range of possibilities,
here is what the path of totality looked like through a welding helmet as
captured on a cell phone.
Photo by Vincent Cantwell
Right. Back to the wine berries
and vintage 2017. As we look at the vintage from our unique perspective, it
appears that our “Sweet 16” harvest is laid out before us in perfectly straight
rows that are 7.5 feet apart and about 400 feet long, mostly. That seems like
easy pickin’s until you realize they are just 30 inches off the vineyard floor.
We will bring in about 100 tons of delectable wine berries, packaged in about
800,000 clusters, more or less. And that’s when it hits us (in the lower back) –
we didn’t used to be this old!
So, things were going pretty good
thus far and we were reminiscing about the great, cool climate vintages of
2005, 2007 and 2010. Then August made its way onto the platform. Without any
ado whatsoever, the first week brought us record breaking temperatures topping
out at 105 degrees Fahrenheit. Then the following week we were topping out in
the 70s, and then back in the 90s. The month vacillated so, and even gave us a
wee little drizzle.
But the vines, those rascals,
were holding on to all the available soil moisture from the incredible soaking
we took last winter. We took in over 50 inches of rain during the 6 month
dormant period which is equal to what an entire year would bring us. And God
bless Texas . And
through the month of August anyway, the vines are holding their own with a lush
green canopy and a leisurely ripening period.
We, however, are on the move.
Crop estimation is that quasi-scientific thing we do to maximize the aroma,
flavor and taste of our wine berries during the remainder of the ripening
period until The Great Cluster Pluck visits itself upon us. We make a very
exacting calculation of how many pounds of wine berries each plant has bedangled
itself with. We look to the growing season to date, as documented on the FLOG, to see how
far along the ripening curve we are as based on our tried and true 104.5 day
ripening average from flowering to Cluster Plucking. We apply a little Kentucky
Windage to that based on the factual degree day accumulation to date, the
functional condition of the canopy, and the gut feel for the upcoming rain patterns
and amounts. We have experience at this, and it is worth reminding everyone
that experience is what you get when you don’t get what you want.
It’s all fairly academic and left
brained until you are standing in front of a vine and start cutting off fruit,
watching it drop to the ground. Some vines need it more than others. Syrah is
the vine that takes it the hardest. That vine can set 10 tons of wine berries
per acre. Ernie can ripen about 2 to 3 of them. The difference hits the ground
as compost. And we have finally got the Viognier program figured out after 16
years - maybe.
So at about 70 seconds per vine
(10 year average) we are thinning the crop load down, removing the late to ripen
wings, and snipping off anything that looks to be a bit suspect. The result is
some pretty farming fine looking clusters that are awaiting The Great Cluster
Pluck of 2017. Of course, not everyone does it this way. Your mileage may vary.
So, just how hot was August 2017
in the last, best place to grow wine? Seek below and ye shall find!
The month of August 2017 recorded
688.7 degree days with a high temperature of 104.5 and a low temperature of
47.5 degrees Fahrenheit. This brings the 2017 growing season to date to 1,782.7
Degree Days.
The 4 prior vintage Degree Day
accumulations are as follows 1,822 (2016), 1,997 (2015), 1,886 (2014) and 1,737
(2013.) Tack on another 300 Degree Days for September and we top out just under
2,100 Degree Days for the vintage and that is just about as farming fine as it
gets.
We received 0.24 inches of
measurable precipitation during the month bringing the growing season to date
total up to 6.27 inches. We received no measurable precipitation during June
and July. It looks like September will give us something. Hopefully enough to
rinse the dust of the wine berries and quell some forest fires. They are
getting out of hand, time for Mother Nature to start putting out.
Kindest Regards,
