In the Vineyard
Single vineyard wines are some of the truly great wines of the world. When they express the unique quality of a remarkable site, the soulful personality of the resulting potion can be inspiring. Care must be taken to pick the grapes at their flavorful best, with an eye toward maximizing their potential. Many times we walked, tasted and talked our way through the vineyard waiting for sun-exposed fruit to showboat it’s stone fruit-best, while more shaded fruit found it’s way past aggressive green bean flavors to altogether more seductive and sweetly herbal Sauvignon Blanc characteristics. Finally, the day of truth arrived. On August 16th, with a crew of 15 enthusiastic souls the harvest went off without a hitch. A good pick is always full of excitement and energy and is curiously anti-climactic: after months of work and worry, suddenly the vineyard is quiet. Seemingly there never was fruit on the vine in the first place! The grapes travel toward the winery, leaving leaf and structure behind for another year. Freed of their bountiful burden, the vines arch upward on their wood and wire supports, eagerly anticipating winter’s deep sleep.