Vineyard Infrastructure
Pictures from this week in the vineyard… working on trellis systems and tightening loose wires.
Hillside Babies
We had a few planting projects this year, including replanting this hillside vineyard. Nothing like seeing new growth and potential in the vineyard.
Good Vineyard Views
There’s no argument that the light at sun rise and magical. Match that with work in a vineyard, tucked between mountains, and well… good view. Cheers!
2021 Grapes
2021 wines grapes - they’re growing and we’ve got bunches and bunches hanging from the vines. No longer baby grapes, but definitely still green.
Sunshine in the Vineyard
The sun has been shining strongly; we’ve had heat waves and the vines are soaking it up and reaching to the sky. It’s an exciting time in the vineyard with all the new growth (yes, we’re bias and love being in the vineyard all times of year)!
Suckering vines
As the vines grow, we continue to guide them towards the best growth - funneling their energy towards growth and premium grapes. We’ve been in the vineyards suckering the vines and removing shoots.
Erosion Control
In the vineyard - On a steep hillside vineyard we brought straw before the recent rain storms. Photos from our work below. May it rain again soon!
Pruning Season
Some of the most important winter work is pruning - setting the next vintage up for success with expert cuts to the canes priming the plant for growth and grapes. Out with the old cut canes. For some of our clients, we also paint/seal the cut ends especially during this rainy season.
Fire Clean Up
This week we helped a client clean up brush to keep their property clear and safer during the fire season. Let us know if you’d like help cleaning up your property.
Before…
After - brush in small piles, ready for the burn pile
Harvest Time 2020 Vintage
2020 is proving challenging in more and more ways. We were happy to kick off the harvest season with a successful early morning harvest this week. Thanks to everyone who worked hard and got the job done. Cheers!
Vineyard Falcon Kite
Once the grapes begin to ripen in the vineyard, we aren’t the only ones that get excited. The birds know it too, and they’re not waiting for a perfect combination of sugars and acidity to ferment into age-worthy wines. In those vineyards with the most issues with birds, we often net the fruit-baring area/zone of the vines. In this case, we also installed a falcon kite which soars above the vines with wind to ward off hungry beaks.
View from the Vineyard
How quickly things change. Perhaps that’s 2020’s mantra. Though I suppose we could all think of multiple others that would suit.
Last week in the vineyard, Francisco made the rounds, checking on vineyards and grapes as we wait for the fruit to ripen. The vineyards look great.
Francisco out checking the vineyards (and staying safe!)
And here the grapes. Wine grapes in all their glory. Look at these!
And then this week, 2020 continued to belch and spew bad news as a sudden lightning storm erupted in the summer sky. Billowing through, bringing fire, fire tornadoes (why is that a thing?), trauma, smoke, and ash. Today’s view:
We watch and wait with anticipation. A hope, wish, and prayer for all our friends and family in Sonoma and Napa Counties.
Weed Whacking
Benefits of weed whacking your property.
Weed whacking - cutting grass and weeds in places that are difficult to reach. Sometimes this means carefully going around the grape vines. Sometimes this means traversing a hillside.
Reasons for keeping your property clean:
It looks nice! There’s a pretty high standard in wine country and plenty of iconic shots with beautiful rows. A well-tended vineyard is obvious. The grape vines and the rows between are neat.
It’s safer for those around. A clean vineyard means less hiding places for critters - in particular rattlesnakes. Seriously. It’s safer for workers and for anyone living close to the vineyard. Check out this article (SF Gate) - rattlesnakes mated earlier this year and we can expect to see baby snakes in the next few weeks.
Fire safety. As we all know, we’ve been experiencing more intense fire seasons over the past few years. And this year our area is already on fire. We’ve have fires in Vacaville, Solano County; Petaluma in Sonoma County, and Contra Costa County. There is also an active fire in Yorkville in Mendocino County. We don’t want to add fuel to the fire - literally, so cutting back grasses is part of the prevention. It helps create your defensible space zone.
‘Tis the season. Here’s to keeping the vineyard clean! Some photos from weed whacking in the vineyard:
Out with the Old
Note - this post was originally published 02.15.2015
After finishing taping & tying the vines - time to remove the brush and leave everything nice and clean.
In the Vineyard - Pruning
This post was originally published 01.31.2015
Winter, when the plants are dormant, is the time to prune the vines and focus growth for the coming vintage. We generally prune vineyards in January and February. This week we're in the Russian River Valley working with Pinot Noir.
September = California Wine Month
Note - this post was originally published 09.11.2014
It's official. The governer decreed it: September 2014 is California Wine Month. Not every September, just this one as an effort to boost morale and let tourists know that we're still here and we still have lovely grapes to harvest and wines to pour and sell.
Governor Brown includes a history of the wine industry in this State (and we thought he'd talk about economic impact): http://gov.ca.gov/news.php?id=18686
Below are a couple photos we took this week of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes ripening in the afternoon sun in St. Helena. Cheers!
Tractor Work
Note - this post was originally published 05.01.2014
The biggest news has probably been the weather. We had a couple chilly, rainy days which gave a lot of people a much needed break/weekend. Then summer roared and we've got a little heat wave with highs in the 90s. Happy first day of May!
Our photo from this week is from our tractor work. Keeping everything clean. There is a wonderfully satisfying feeling of taking care of a vineyard, being stewards of the land, and turning around after a hard day's work and seeing the beautiful, maintained vines.
A Little Green
Note - this post was originally published 3/21/2014.
This week it was a pleasure to drive around the Russian River and Napa Valleys. The first signs of green. Only a little rain this year and yet we still get to enjoy greenery. Spring is here:
Vineyards: Pest Management
Note - this post was originally published 2/19/2014.
Congrats to Francisco! He is now a licensed private applicator for pesticides. Looking for someone to employ to take care of your vineyards and/or wine? Look no further. Awesome career development and good for personal safety. He can now apply pesticides and teach others about the safety precautions to take when working with pesticides.
There are many strategies for pest management in the vineyards. At some point to protect the grapes though, vineyard owners (even the organically farmed ones) often choose to spray. For example, they might spray a sulfur solution to prevent molds/powdery mildew after summer rains.