Why winegrowers prefer a chilly March

With each passing week vines become more sensitive to warm spells. In December a stretch of spring-like weather would not phase them, but by mid-March they are highly tuned to temperature cues. A week of 70°s or 80°s F would swell tender buds. If extreme warmth were to continue, the vines would break bud early. So why would this be a problem?

Right now our dormant buds are encased in a hard, protective coat. But a string of very warm days will stimulate sap flow which in turn will swell the vine’s buds. The tender swollen buds could then be damaged during pruning. This is why we are under some pressure to finish our pruning operations soon. Fortunately Cabernet Sauvignon always “wakes up” a good ten days later than other grape varieties. This is why we prune Cabernet Sauvignon last. Just in case.
 
Early bud break is much more stressful. The average bud break at Hardscrabble is April 20, but over the past several years it has been trending earlier. Once the buds open and expose their tiny green leaves, temperatures below 29°F can kill the entire bud, including all its embedded flower clusters. Bottom line: no grapes. The earlier bud break, the longer the buds remain vulnerable to a potential frost.

March 19 Pop up

We’ve begun a new concept at Linden: Pop Up Tastings. These are small, irregular, short notice, geeky tastings that happen whenever we feel like it. Recently we were tasting through our 2022 Chardonnay barrels. It struck us that this would be the perfect tasting for Chardonnay aficionados who would like to learn the minutiae of how vine age, clones, barrels, (and eggs) influence the final wine.

Pop up Barrel Tasting: Hardscrabble Chardonnay 2022

Sunday, March 19

Hardscrabble’s Chardonnay vineyards include plantings of different aged vines, clones, and micro-terroirs. Jim Law will guide participants through a tasting of individual barrels reflecting these differences. We will end with an “in progress” final blend of Hardscrabble Chardonnay 2022.

Participants will first taste at the tasting counter and then descend to the cellar with Jim. There is very limited space in the cellar, so reservations are limited to parties of only one or two.

Sunday, March 19
11:00 and 1:00
Limited to parties of one or two only
Price: $75 pp

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Linden Vineyards / Learn More / Latest at Linden | Update: March 14, 2023