Clear, warm, dry weather continues. Clusters were almost 100% darkened on the open, east sides of the rows by the end of last week. By today, the shaded, west side is about 99% darkened at the top of the vineyard, 90-95% darkened in the middle of the vineyard, and 85-90% darkened in the lower part of the vineyard.
Sugar is perceptible, acid is starting to become tolerable, skin tannins and flavor are not yet perceptible, and seeds are beginning to take on some coloring beyond the immature green shade. Shoots have lignified, becoming canes; and the canopy is in great shape, in spite of having had only about 0.1 inches of rain in going on 3 months.
The upcoming week is expected to have several abnormally warm days into the 90s. The current outlook through mid-October is unusually dry, less than 0.1 inches of rain; and warmer than normal. It's currently looking like this lower than average yield crop, will fully ripen with little or no rot risk; no flocks of birds in sight, yet.
Pomard Clone:
Wadenswil Clone:
