Sunday, August 29, 2010

Looking toward harvest

Wet cool spring. Very cool summer. Heat spike last week means we can now look ahead to harvest. Brix 20-22. Acids still high but coming down. Most all of the fruit through veraison. I anm hoping/wishing/praying all goes smoothly as we come down the home stretch! Probably picking late Sept or even into early October. All sorts of potential to be a stellar vintage!

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

The Calm Before the Storm: Vineyard Update

It is mid August and things are eerily calm for this time of year. The cool weather all summer has slowed down ripening and most of our fruit is just now going through veraison- fully two weeks behind "normal." Normal is in quotes because, after all, we are talking about the weather!

The answer to whether this is a good thing or a bad thing is, like so much of winemaking: it depends.

Slow even ripening of the fruit is clearly a big plus- it promotes more complexity and flavor and without the loss of acidity that can happen with very ripe fruit.

On the other hand, many growers are worrying whether the fruit will ripen sufficiently before the October rains start. Picking in the rain is obviously no fun and can be bad for the grapes- the roots will take up the water and can dilute the flavors by pumping water into the grapes.

For winemakers there is also the question of getting the fruit in and made into wine. If it all ripens at once, winemakers will be working round the clock. Winemakers hope the grapes will ripen at different times to be able to handle the flow. But we have to play the cards that Mother Nature deals us . The next three to four weeks will determine all of this!

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Happy New Year All- 2008 Poinsett Pinot Noir

Ok, it's still a baby - 2008 wine and only bottled at Thanksgiving. But I get impatient and had to see how this one was coming along. Popped and poured it thorough a Vinturi (a quick way to aerate wine) this past weekend to toast the New Year.

As I remembered from our blending of this wine... showing lots of wild berry flavors, relatively restrained alcohol, brilliant garnet color, translucent at the rim. Everything is in balance on this wine and I am very happy with how this wine is coming along. Less cranberry and raspberry than the 07 Poinsett and a tad more blue and black fruit with that wild berry element but not at all heavy, indeed quite light and very elegant. So young, very primary on the fruit but with wood, spice and earth nuances showing behind the fruit.

In another year the fruit will recede a bit and more of the spice and earth should show. This will be a perfect food wine and should age extremely well. I would not hesitate to cellar this for ten years.

Cheers,

Dave