2021 Earth Day, Vineyard Anniversary & Bud Break

 Hello and Welcome, 

 

Willamette Valley cherry blossoms, aka popcorn trees. 

 

The popcorn trees are blooming, and the bumble bees are tending to the trees and the grape hyacinths. The swallows have returned from their southern vacation to build nests and hatch their chicks. The last of the daffodils are making way for the first tulip and iris sightings. Bud break on April 15th in the Pinot Noir vines puts us on notice that in about 20 weeks they will be ready for The Great Cluster Pluck – Vintage 2021, the Year of the Dijon Clones. It’s Earth Day in the Willamette Valley, and don’t we know it! 

 

Bumble bees are responsible for nearly 2/3's of US pollination.

A FLOG communication (Farming bLOG) by Dena & Ernie from Amalie Robert Estate. Oregon Willamette Valley Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Have a look and see what we see on Instagram @AmalieRobert Estate. We are ramping up on FaceBook! (If you don’t like us, we don’t wanna know…)

 

Welcome Vintage 2021! Good luck, you are going to need it!

In the vineyard business, bud break is the visual start to the vintage. Those buds, they look oh so innocent and cute just waking up to the possibilities of vintage 2021 - all 1.4 MILLION of them. Yeah, they look cute now, but give them a few weeks and those buds will have produced 6-foot canes that will need trellis catch wires and their first hedge. They grow up so fast…

 

We welcome the farming challenge and in turn, celebrate Earth Day. While we focus on the land, because we grow wine, it is important to remember that 71% of the Earth is covered with water.

 

So sure, go ahead and plant a tree this weekend, but if you are wading into aquaculture that is a whole different matter. As you make your way through life’s carnival, it is important to remember: Don’t pet the alligators.

 

And it’s our Anniversary! We established the vineyard at Amalie Robert Estate on Earth Day at the turn of the century. When we found the vineyard, Mr. Shingler had his Montmorency cherry orchard sitting on top of it. That was 1999, and 80 tons of cherries and 1,188 cherry trees later we are growing about 55,000 vines over 36 acres. They are viticulturally spaced at 4 feet apart.

 

Our little red wild cherry sporting popcorn blooms.

But there are three wild cherry trees we keep. One is a plump dark red cherry, one is a Montmorency cherry, and one is a little red wild cherry with a pit that makes up about 95% of the diameter. The latter of these three cherries are mostly propagated and sold by dentists.

 

The last of the first 15,000 vines went in the newly prepared soil 22 years ago. And while our communication has become more and more digital with E-mail and Zoom and INSTANT text messaging, we still find time to speak to each other face to face. Maybe even over a glass of wine. Remember those days? They are coming back into fashion. Sometimes the old ways are still the best ways… just as soon as we can get rid of these masks.

 

The numbers. We don’t have any climate data to share yet, that will be coming at the end of April. What we do have is the roadmap for vintage 2021. Bud break is the first major event and we were lucky to escape any frost damage from the near freezing temperatures at the start of April. But every vineyard site is different and low elevation sites without proper air drainage may not have fared as well.

 

They say old cherry orchards make for good vineyards and frost damage is exactly why – cherry trees bloom (flower) about the same time vines experience bud break. Cherry trees are an indicator plant of where you could plant a vineyard. Just imagine if Johnny was spreading cherry pits instead of apple seeds... Oh man!

 

Cherry trees are an indicator plant for wine grapes.

If a cherry orchard has a history of frost damage when they bloom, there is a very good chance that vines planted there will suffer frost damage during bud break. And if those buds get frosted and die, that pretty much cancels the vineyard growing season. Kinda like smoke taint, but at the beginning of the growing season, not the end.

 

The next big event in the vineyard is bloom (flowering) which is what the cherry trees are doing right now. The time from bud break to bloom is quite variable and hard to predict. However, once we see bloom we are on autopilot. For Pinot Noir in the Willamette Valley, the historical average is bloom plus 104 days equals harvest. Now harvest may change a few days either way depending on Mother Nature, but no matter, Willamette still rhymes with Janet, damnit.

 

Kindest Regards,

Dena & Ernie

Amalie Robert Estate: Easter Culinary Inclinations and The Year of the Dijon Clones

Hello and Welcome, 

Easter is just around the corner. The first Sunday in April this year, but it is not always the first Sunday, and sometimes we have to wait until May. Easter is celebrated on the first Sunday following the full moon that occurs on or just after the spring equinox. This year, the spring equinox happened on Saturday, March 20. The first full moon, the Worm Moon, to occur after that date was Sunday, March 28, so logically, Easter will be Sunday, April 4. Alternatively, there is the Golden Number method. 

It may seem complicated, but it is clearly more rational than the bespoke “Inner Circle” assembling at Pennsylvania’s Gobbler’s Knob and rousting an oversized rodent to determine how much more winter is coming our way. They call it a ground hog, but it’s really a marmot.

 

A FLOG communication (Farming bLOG) by Dena & Ernie from Amalie Robert Estate. Oregon Willamette Valley Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Have a look and see what we see on Instagram @AmalieRobert Estate. We are ramping up on FaceBook! (If you don’t like us, we don’t wanna know…)

  

Easter’s culinary inclinations are many and as varied as our diverse cultures. However, there is one universally accepted abstinence for Easter dinner, and that is rabbit. This is quite unfortunate, as small game such as the furry, long eared rabbit is a perfect pairing with Pinot Noir. But alas, it is not to be. Grilled rabbit saddle wrapped in prosciutto will have to wait. Braised rabbit quarters falling off the bone in white beans, with parsnips and chanterelles over creamy roast garlic polenta – not happening. Rabbit stew? Nope. Rabbit paté or terrine? Verboten! That rascally rabbit should have Easter subtitled as World Wabbit Day.

 
 
A duck trying to disguise itself as a rabbit.
 

So, that leaves us with lamb or maybe duck. That’s not so bad. Could be worse. Duck thighs and rabbit hind quarters are kinda the same size and shape, sort of. Better to not risk it. We are going with rack of lamb in a Dijon mustard crust. It ties right into the Year of the Dijon Clones - imagine that, what great timing! Note: this preparation works equally well for a rack of pork. Or maybe beef rib roast, but that is an exercise left to the reader.

 

Are you looking for me?

The first step here is to secure a proper protein specimen from your favorite meat purveyor. Trim off any “excess” fat and slice between the bones up to, but not into, the meat. For the Dijon mustard crust, we like the texture that a coarse stone ground mustard provides. And it makes you feel like you are getting your money’s worth out of the daily flossing routine.

 

Depending on the size and quantity of your protein, start with a few dollops of mustard in a small ramekin and add a pinch of dried Italian herbs, a bit of smoked hot paprika and a little powdered ginger. Optional: you can add a few (or more) drops of sesame or hot chili oil. Mix this all together with a small fork until fully blended in. Depending on the amount of paprika, this will be a yellow/tan mixture or coral pink. Nice!

 

Apply the Dijon mustard crust mixture with the fork horizontally across the meat. This will form small ridges that will add contour to the final presentation. Apply fresh cracked pepper over the mixture, black or white sesame seeds (more grist for the floss) and additional paprika for color matching if desired. People eat with their eyes, usually just as soon as it comes out of the oven. When they say “Damn, that’s HOT!” You can simply say “Yes. I know.”

 

Cook to the proper internal temperature and let rest undisturbed for at least 5 minutes. Place your plates and bowls into the oven to warm them before serving. Move on over to the wine station where your Pinot Noir, cork removal device and appropriate stemware stand ready. This little interlude provides for ample sample time and perhaps a thought to ponder.

 

Dijon Clone 777 Pinot Noir in Amalie Robert Block 2.

The year of the Dijon Clones – What are they and why should I care? We get this question a lot. As a grower of wine, we have to be up on the latest plant material (clones) and the characteristics those clones will impart into our wine. From a consumer point of view, Dijon Clones is a fanciful name that helps keep your cellar records organized. But really, it is so much more.

 

The first misconception we would like to clear up is that these Pinot Noir clones have NOTHING to do with mustard. However, we do hope you find the mustard encrusted culinary inclination pairs quite nicely with our Dijon Clones Pinot Noir. And Willamette rhymes with Janet, damnit!

 

The Dijon clones of Pinot Noir (and Chardonnay) were developed at a research station in Burgundy near the town of Dijon. Each of the clones are numbered, more on that in a bit, and several of them came to the US at the same time. They were collectively referred to as the “Dijon Clones.”

 

Dijon Clone Chardonnay.

Other clones of Pinot Noir were just coming on the scene as well, but without a proven track record of quality, they were left on the grafting bench. Farmers are risk averse people (except for their stated profession – farming) and without a “for sure” buyer they were not going to take a runner on an unproven clone. That is one reason why the Jackson clone of Pinot Noir is not widely planted. However, Ernie has a little of the Beba clone planted.

 

“Beba” from Spain” From Nancy L. Sweet, FPS Historian, University of California, Davis

 

“Another Pinot noir clone from that 1951 shipment of grape clones from Europe remains in the FPS grape collection with ambiguity surrounding its origin. The Hewitt import binder and FPS database give the origin of the “Beba” variety in the shipment as “Spain”. Spain has never been noted for its Pinot noir production. Olmo wrote in his journal for the 1951 trip that he did collect cuttings in Spain for a variety known as “Beba”, a white Spanish grapevine variety used to make sherry. Olmo’s journal indicated that he collected the “Beba” cuttings a few miles outside of Seville. The name “Beba” became assigned to Introduction number 804 in the Hewitt import binder at FPS.

 

Pinot noir and Beba are clearly unrelated varieties. The facts suggest a label mixup at some time when the vines were sent from Europe. The plant material with Introduction number 804 was named Beba upon arrival at FPMS and was planted in the foundation vineyard in 1961 under that name. The selection remained on the list of registered vines with the name Beba until 1966, when the name was changed to Pinot noir 07A. The selection was renamed again in 1967 to Pinot noir 10. The variety identification as Pinot noir was made at that time by experts at FPMS using visual identification techniques.”

 

No one has solved the mystery behind the Beba Pinot Noir clone, but what the hell? And then there is Dick Erath’s clone 95, another mystery wrapped in a riddle. Yeah, we grow that too.

Right. What’s a clone? Check your Easter basket. All of those eggs are pretty similar in size and shape, not exactly but close enough – unless you have a mix of chicken, duck, pheasant and quail eggs. These individual species represent the different wine grapes. Within each species, their Easter dye colors are different, and that is what sets them apart. But when you crack one open you know what awaits inside is going to have similarities across that species, or wine varietal. But your fingers will be very colorful for quite some time. Pheasant eggs make a very nice frittata, just saying.

 

Note: This may be a good time to point out that Pinot Noir is one of the few wine grapes that is not a blending grape. Think about that. Do you know of any respected wine growing region that makes a blend of Pinot Noir and another grape? Burgundy does a little blending with Gamay, as does Switzerland, but that is about it. And of course, there is Champagne. You have to have Champagne.

 

From Jancis Robinson:

 

“Gamay’s stronghold is Beaujolais but it is also grown widely just to the north in the Mâconnais – indeed red Mâcon is usually based on Gamay – although in southern Burgundy, as in Switzerland where quite a bit of Gamay is grown, there is a tradition of blending Pinot Noir and Gamay, specifically in the ubiquitous Dôle. The official Burgundian name for this is Bourgogne Passetoutgrains, a wine of declining interest that is supposed to taste more and more like Pinot with time.”

 

Dijon Clone Pinot Noir Pre-Cluster Pluck.

Wine grapes are a specific type of grape. They have specific sugar and acid profiles that are uniquely suited to wine production. They are different from table grapes or juice grapes or grapes used for raisins such as Thompson Seedless. Although it may be the case where some of these grapes do get made into wine. But thanks to the foresight of the wine growing forefathers and mothers in Oregon, it doesn’t happen in the Willamette Valley. Any wine produced in Oregon with Pinot Noir on the label, MUST contain at least 95% Pinot Noir in the bottle. The federal mandate is only 75%.

 

Thinking and drinking. We can segment wine grapes into varieties such as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir and then into clones such as Wente (Chardonnay), Pommard, Wadenswil and Dijon Clone 777 (Pinot Noir). Most varieties of wine grapes have several clones. Some have just a single clone such as Viognier. If a new bacteria, fungus, or virus takes a liking to Viognier and eradicates it, well, that's just not good.

 

Within each vine variety, new clones are developed through propagating seeds. Each wine berry typically has 2 or 4 seeds. Much like any offspring, these seeds are genetically similar to the parent, but not exactly the same. And where did Prince Harry get that flaming red hair? The seeds are propagated and new vines are grown - just like in The Matrix.

 

Each of these vines are evaluated for quality. The first step in evaluation is whether the new clone is fruitful. Will the flowers pollinate and set fruit? This has a lot to do with the weather during the flowering period in the region where the varietal is grown. A vine that cannot set fruit is not a contributing member of the trial and is culled. Sorry Coppertop.

 

If the vine does set fruit, then a multiyear trial begins. The vine is evaluated on several factors including, but not limited to, accidentally being left without irrigation over the August holiday period. This is formally known as a “drought tolerance” evaluation. The main factors used to evaluate the production potential of any wine grape clone according to the French Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food are:

 

Fertility (F): This is the ratio of the number of clusters produced from the number of buds left on a cane after pruning. We typically leave 12 buds on a 4 foot cane and can expect anywhere from 16 to 30 clusters. An acre of vines at Amalie Robert Estate represents 5,808 lineal feet. Therefore, we have a potential yield of 23,232 – 43,560 clusters per acre. An AVERAGE Pinot Noir cluster comes in at 4 to the pound.

 

Cluster Weight (CW): This is a comparison of the median cluster weight of the specific clone to the entire population of clones within the variety. In other words, how big is a cluster and how many of the flowers on a cluster successfully pollinate and set fruit. Sometimes it only takes 3 clusters to make a pound, sometimes it is 5.

 

Level of Production (LP): This is a function of Fertility and Cluster Weight. Vines that produce small clusters and just a few of them, may produce wines of high-quality that are representative of the variety. The highest quality potential is A and extends down to the lowest which is D.

 

Sugar Content (SC): This is the sugar concentration measured at the time of full aroma and flavor maturity compared to the average of the other clones within the variety. The ideal is that the sugar concentration does not get ahead of the sensory aroma and flavor development.

 

Here it is in tabular form. This is what the researchers get paid the big bucks to figure out. Then it is up to the growers to decide what to grow, usually based on the input from the wineries on what they want to buy. Here is a subset of the Dijon Clones we have chosen to make wine from at Amalie Robert Estate. The decisions to use these clones, along with a selection of rootstocks, was made at the turn of the century, and as is the case with any endeavor – luck favors the prepared mind.

 

Variety	Clone	F	CW	LP	SC	Enological Attributes
Chardonnay	76	Medium	Medium	B	Superior	Well balanced, aromatic
Chardonnay	95	Medium	Medium	B	Superior	Full, rich and balanced
Pinot Noir	113	Medium	Medium	B	Superior	Balanced, light wine
Pinot Noir	114	Medium	Medium	B	Superior	Interesting for blending
Pinot Noir	115	Medium	Medium	B	Superior	Typical, rich and bodied
Pinot Noir	667	Medium	Medium	B	Superior	Fine aromatics & tannins
Pinot Noir	777	Medium	Inferior to medium	A	Superior	Very good quality

Source: Catalogue of Selected Wine Grape Varieties and Clones Cultivated in France.

 

The first thing to note is that there is only one ”A” clone and that is Dijon Clone Pinot Noir 777. This attribute was quite the buzz when the vines were first made available in the Willamette Valley. In practice, we find small clusters and typically our yield per vine is less than other clones, except 667.

 

Sugar accumulation is in line with the rest of the Dijon Clones we grow. Rootstocks and placement on the property contribute significant complexing factors, so it is difficult to separate correlation from causation. And if you think this is cool, consider the fact that we grow 3 Syrah “A” clones. Of course, we are not at liberty to divulge which ones…

 

Dijon Clone Pinot Noir Post-Cluster Pluck.

We have been paying attention in the cellar over the past 20 years and have a pretty good feel for what these clones can contribute. Some find their way into our reserve level wines, and some are targeted for a specific blend. We each have our favorites. Dena likes the elegance of 113 and the brawn of 115 – she is a Gemini. Ernie is all about the texture that 114 adds to the mid-palate. The 667 clone adds an almost Syrah like tannin and a depth of color not matched by the other clones. And then there is 777. The only “A” clone. This is a very well balanced clone that hits all the right notes at just the right times. Well deserving of its moniker.

 

The Big Reveal. And that 777 clone only goes one place. It is the base wine of our Dijon Clones Pinot Noir. We blend all of the 777 barrels together and then we add a little bit of each of the other clones to finish the blend. How do you like me now? There is never any Pommard, Wadenswil, or any of that other stuff Ernie grows but never really talks about… You will most likely find that in his Estate Selection bottling.

 

The numbers. We know it is a little early to start on the climate updates. We don’t start analyzing numbers until the growing season officially starts on April Fools’ Day. How apropos. But to get you ready, we have a little exercise on the “Golden Number” in case you want to foretell the date of Easter future.

 

The Golden Number method is kind of a placeholder to tell you where you are in the Metonic cycle. The Golden Number is a value used to show the dates of new moons for each year, following a 19-year cycle. The moon repeats the dates of its phases approximately every 19 years (the Metonic cycle), and the Golden Number represents a year in that cycle. The year of the cycle can then be used to determine the date of Easter.

 

To calculate the Golden Number, add 1 to any given year and divide the result by 19, the remainder is the Golden Number. If there is no remainder, the Golden Number is 19. To calculate the Golden Number for 2021, we take 2021 and add 1, resulting in 2022, then divide it by 19, giving us 106 with a remainder of 8. Therefore, the Golden Number for 2021 is 8, meaning 2021 is the 8th year of the Metonic cycle.

 

Why can’t Easter just be the first Sunday in April every year?

 

Kindest Regards,

Dena & Ernie