Suddenly It Started
Yesterday was our first day of harvest. Last week’s heat and this continuing dry spell accelerated ripening.
Read MoreCautiously Optimistic
All the usual signs are pointing towards a very good vintage for 2019. The vines and clusters are healthy. Numbers (sugar and acid) are good. Very little rain. However I’m restraining my enthusiasm. At least for now.
Read MoreA Good Transition
The soil is dry and the vines are slowing down. Right on time. You have no idea how exciting this is to winegrowers.
Read MoreTransition Time
Late July brings a shift to the vineyard and to the cellar.
Patience Rewards: Bottle Evolution Seminars August 18 & 25 — Sold out
Wines constantly evolve during aging in the cellar and in the bottle. Bottled wines gain complexity and integration with time. So what does that mean? There is only one way to find out.
Read MoreLag Phase
The vineyard has now entered lag phase, which is the transition period from growth to ripening.
Read MoreHail no!
Two weeks ago both Hardscrabble and Avenius Vineyards experienced a moderate hail event. Yield losses are modest, around 10%. However, the lingering damage could adversely affect the quality of the vintage.
Read MoreLucky Break
Linden was lucky this week. Daily predictions of heavy rainfall from thunderstorms never materialized (with the exception of a 15-minute deluge on Monday). Soils are beginning to dry out.
Read MoreVintage 2019
Vintage 2019 is progressing well. The first milestone of a vintage’s success is flowering. This year’s flowering was early (late May through the first week in June). Conditions were ideal with warm, sunny, dry days.
Terroir Project
2018’s planting struggled to get going this spring. Some vines did not make it through the winter, as they were too weak after the unforgiving rains and lack of sun last year. The planting is looking healthier now.
Read MoreCanopy Work
June is our busiest and most demanding month in the vineyard. Vigorous vine growth is fueled by soil moisture, heat and abundant sun. This spring has provided us a hat trick on all three accounts.
Read MoreDry, Warm, and Sunny
Pinch me. When was the last time we heard this mantra.
Bright, dark green vine leaves. Firm soil. Dry socks. These are a few of my favorite things. After the wettest vintage on record we are especially grateful.
Read MoreGrowth Spurt
May’s weather is predictably unpredictable. While this can inconvenience our morning wardrobe selection, the vines don’t seem to be much bothered by it. Everything looks pretty good at this stage.
Read MoreSpring!
Spring is unfolding nicely. Budbreak was right on time. No frost, and enough (but not too much) rain. Wonderfully normal with no surprises, just what we farmers hope for.
Fortunately, this spring’s excitement is contained to the tasting room. Three new, distinct wines have just been released.
2018 Rosé | Silver Lining
2017 Village Chardonnay | Youthful Exuberance
2017 Avenius Sauvignon Blanc | Patience Rewards
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Like Clockwork
Hardscrabble’s Chardonnay vines budded out on April 19. This is wonderfully normal (the thirty year average date is April 20). With farming and weather, average is as good as it gets.
Read MoreGrafting Project | Linden’s Climate Change Trial Vineyard
Vine pruning is finished. Now the waiting game starts, although the vines are progressing quickly with higher than average temperatures. Young Chardonnay vines will begin bud break any day now. We’ll have a few weeks before the vines are at a stage were they need handwork attention, so now is a good time to graft our first vines for Linden’s Climate Change Trial Vineyard.
Read MoreRocky Knob
We just finished a very successful planting of 1,400 Cabernet Sauvignon vines. The last day was grueling as the best slope was saved for last. This particular slope consists of a very large pile of rocks. And not much else.
Read MorePlanting
Planting a new vineyard block gives great satisfaction and optimism. It will be years before there is something tangible produced, but the process itself is rewarding.
Read MoreSpring is late this year.
Chardonnay, being our most precocious variety, is the indicator of spring’s progression. No sign of bud swell.
No Expectations
Vintage 2018 was difficult.
Fridays
Linden is now open Fridays.
Evolution Seminar with Jim Law | April 14
Jim Law will present older library vintages along with some yet to be released wines.
Terroir Project
Three years ago I started writing about the decision to remove and replant the vines growing on one of Hardscrabble’s best vineyard sites.
Special Cellar Tastings | 2019 #2
For those interested in adding more depth to their wine knowledge, Linden’s current cellar tasting is a classic.
Read MoreSpring Transition
Spring is slow this year. That is fine with us. It gives us more time to finish pruning, tying and trellis repair. The vines are only just starting to bleed. This is the winegrower term for when the sap flows after making a pruning cut. It is a good sign: the vines are coming to life.
Read MoreBottling
Preservation of the wine’s fresh aromas and flavors depends on getting the wine from barrel into bottle with military-like precision.
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