2008 SEASON — Seventh Harvest

Four short fruiting canes were pruned to utilize the up-down spread of the trellis system. The vines are balanced, fruit/canopy, to encourage complex structured flavors for wine.

A little earlier than last year, by March 10, most buds had appeared—just in time for April frost. Yikes! A new wind machine, the result of Nunes' good instincts in February at the International Farm Exposition in Tulare, CA, saved most of the fruit (more than once!).

Flowers weathered a few hot days, bringing canopy temperature to 86 degrees right in the middle of bloom. But after a short period of flowering, canes, leaves and fruit thrived through the rest of the mild spring and early summer. Early nail biting aside, the bunches set small and loose and seem about average in number.

After pruning and tying with Pellenc machines, Nunes' crew and adjunct workers traverse the vineyard, suckering, shoot thinning and positioning canes. Mild warm weather prevailing, lower shoots were turned down spreading the canes onto the tall trellis and exposing the fruit to the right amount of dappled sunlight.

Careful watering after a relatively dry winter and spring  keeps riparian roots supple in the shallow soil. The first week of July berries started changing from green to purple. Like everything this season, véraison is was little early. A large crew was sent through to thin bunches to beat it and balance the vines.

August starts with mild weather, the grapes are gathering sugar and turning their precursors into flavor compounds. The Nunes crew wanders through tweaking the vineyard and chasing birds, making sure the vines are on approach for landing in early September.

Link to PDF:
Understanding Grape Berry Development

—by James Kennedy,
Department of Food, Science & Technology
Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon

Wind Machine  — New portable wind machine on its way to save the day!

Budburst  — Dorothy's block
Clone 114 March

Veraison  — Home Block
July 15