We are off and running on another vintage on two fronts. 2009 vintage has started to peek out as the vineyard begins to wake up after a short winter’s nap. Bud break is the official term and our “Hell Block” is always first to emerge, just in time for a cold front to drop in on us. Last night was a balmy 28.0 F and the night before slightly cooler at 27.5 F. I have been running frost control and our “technology” has been working but it’s not perfect. I have noticed a few frost burnt areas so Hell Block is definitely living up to its namesake this year. I lovingly refer to our frost control efforts as “technology” but I am not convinced that it is in any way a good thing. I will remind you that the Hell Block is roughly 3 acres and a miniscule part of our production, however it receives the lion’s share of attention due to its inclination to frequently lose its crop.
Our technology includes: micro-sprinklers, (due to micro amounts of water available from our well) Frost fans, diverter curtains, and plain old mowing. Our micro-sprinklers run on a 2gal/minute demand, similar to a drip system in your landscaping. They have a tiny balloon inside that fills until a certain pressure is achieved and then releases a precisely directed burst of water. This happens at a frequency of once per second. The idea is to take what little water we do have and direct it exactly where we need it to go, which is onto the emerging buds. It’s pretty simple; ice will form on the vines and act as insulation. If a sprinkler plugs or fails the new buds will not get covered in ice and will die, so it’s not perfect and we usually still get some frost burn with this method. To fix this problem we need more technology, frost fans. We use a type of fan that is similar to a pump. Our fans sit in the vine rows and direct the cold air on the vineyard floor upward and in theory this air is replaced by the warmer air just above it. Again not perfect, but it’s something. To fix this, we add…..that’s right, still more technology. Cold air diverter curtains! Yes, as silly as it sounds, in theory, it might work. I am still not convinced but we like our technology. We hang six foot tall curtains along fences in areas that might be a source of cold air, such as a grassy field that slopes toward Hell Block. Now these curtains work in cahoots with the fans. As the fans are pumping the cold air out of the vineyard the curtains are diverting any more cold air from spilling in from another cold air source. Like I said, I’m not fully convinced it does anything other than give me busy work, I love that! So for my last trick I rely on good old fashioned low tech. I mow the grass. A simple and yet still very effective way to warm a vineyard. Disking a vineyard or mowing a vineyard very close to the ground will actually warm a vineyard at night by a few degrees. Believe it or not bare moist soil will retain day time heat energy and release it at night, and so we mow!
Front number two, is much more fun. We recently bottled our 07 Zinfandel, 07 Zephyr, 07 Wanderlust, and our 08 ZC White. We are close to being sold out of our 2007 ZC White, 2006 Estate Zinfandel and 2006 Zephyr so get your last case before it disappears for good. Wander-what , you ask? Wanderlust is my newest blend which consists of Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvedre. This is the first blend from vineyards besides my own. I searched and wandered the countryside for the best Grenache and Mourvedre to blend with my Estate Syrah. I think you will enjoy this one very much, look for it in your next shipment!
Our technology includes: micro-sprinklers, (due to micro amounts of water available from our well) Frost fans, diverter curtains, and plain old mowing. Our micro-sprinklers run on a 2gal/minute demand, similar to a drip system in your landscaping. They have a tiny balloon inside that fills until a certain pressure is achieved and then releases a precisely directed burst of water. This happens at a frequency of once per second. The idea is to take what little water we do have and direct it exactly where we need it to go, which is onto the emerging buds. It’s pretty simple; ice will form on the vines and act as insulation. If a sprinkler plugs or fails the new buds will not get covered in ice and will die, so it’s not perfect and we usually still get some frost burn with this method. To fix this problem we need more technology, frost fans. We use a type of fan that is similar to a pump. Our fans sit in the vine rows and direct the cold air on the vineyard floor upward and in theory this air is replaced by the warmer air just above it. Again not perfect, but it’s something. To fix this, we add…..that’s right, still more technology. Cold air diverter curtains! Yes, as silly as it sounds, in theory, it might work. I am still not convinced but we like our technology. We hang six foot tall curtains along fences in areas that might be a source of cold air, such as a grassy field that slopes toward Hell Block. Now these curtains work in cahoots with the fans. As the fans are pumping the cold air out of the vineyard the curtains are diverting any more cold air from spilling in from another cold air source. Like I said, I’m not fully convinced it does anything other than give me busy work, I love that! So for my last trick I rely on good old fashioned low tech. I mow the grass. A simple and yet still very effective way to warm a vineyard. Disking a vineyard or mowing a vineyard very close to the ground will actually warm a vineyard at night by a few degrees. Believe it or not bare moist soil will retain day time heat energy and release it at night, and so we mow!
Front number two, is much more fun. We recently bottled our 07 Zinfandel, 07 Zephyr, 07 Wanderlust, and our 08 ZC White. We are close to being sold out of our 2007 ZC White, 2006 Estate Zinfandel and 2006 Zephyr so get your last case before it disappears for good. Wander-what , you ask? Wanderlust is my newest blend which consists of Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvedre. This is the first blend from vineyards besides my own. I searched and wandered the countryside for the best Grenache and Mourvedre to blend with my Estate Syrah. I think you will enjoy this one very much, look for it in your next shipment!
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