Fortunately for us, our vineyard ripens early, allowing us to harvest ripe fruit at the earliest point since we took over in 2006. We brought in our first fruit on September 19, our last on September 27.
Our 2013 wines are in barrel, going through malolactic fermentation. We'll see how they turn out, but at this point they have red and blue fruit flavors, moderate alcohol levels, soft tannins, and juicy acidity. Here's what they look like:
In another twist to a strange season - after the hottest season in memory; then all the rain, humidity, and cold that forced wineries to bring their grapes in early - Mother Nature gave us a beautiful, dry, sunny end to October. Just before rain began again this past weekend we were able to plant 3500 new vines, as part of our ongoing vineyard renovation project to quadruple vine density, increase the number of Pinot clones/selections, and establish a hedge against phylloxera by planting resistant rootstock.
A soon as the leaves finish falling, we'll remove clips from the catchwires and begin the annual pruning process.
