was a banner year for us as it was the first year that we harvested
fruit from our vines. After three seasons in the ground, the
vines that we planted in 2003 were ready to yield a small crop,
which we picked in early October. After years of planning, anticipation
and hard work, we were delighted to get a first taste of the
fruits of our vineyard. Hilltop Vineyard
In anticipation of our first harvest, the vines in our Hilltop Vineyard, which we planted in 2003, were carefully trained and monitored throughout the season to ensure that each vine was allowed to carry the optimum amount of fruit, and that all the fruit was given the best possible sun exposure and opportunity to ripen. One of the biggest decisions we had to make was how much crop to leave on the vines this year; some
A bud beginning to sprout.
In May, shortly after the vines came out of dormancy and began growing again, the first pass through the vineyard and assessment of each vine was made. All leaves growing below the fruiting wire were removed, and shoots within the canopy were thinned to ensure that each shoot had a unique position in the canopy and that the vine was not overly crowded.
In early June, as the vines began flowering, we made the second pass of the
Before tie-up (top photo);
After tie-up (bottom photo)
In July and early August as the fruit began to change color and enter the first stages of ripening, we made a third assessment of each vine, and at this point we were able to make a final decision about how much crop each vine would support. This is a careful balancing act. Each of our 14,000 bearing vines is considered individually so we can determine how much fruit it can ripen. If we try to leave too much fruit on the vine, it will not have the resources to ripen the bunches well, the fruit will be of lower quality, and the over-exertion may weaken the vine in the long term. On the other hand, if too little fruit is left on the vine, the plant may have excess energy which it will spend on producing leaves rather than fruit. This can lead to more vigorous leaf growth and poorer fruit quality in coming years.
This is one of those situations in which we realize how little is known about the life of the vine, even after thousands of years of wine growing, and how much the answers to most grape growing issues differ by climate, rainfall, soil type, farming practices etc. To us, this is one of the best parts of wine growing; local intuition is still more powerful than general scientific knowledge.
Once we had assessed each vine and made a determination of how much fruit it should carry, we removed any extra bunches in what is called the green harvest. At this point, the vines were left to soak up as much sun as possible, and gradually ripen their remaining bunches.
A beautiful, dry and sunny September was just what the vines needed to finish off the job of ripening their fruit and concentrating the flavors of the grapes. While we had some late season rains brought by the lingering Tropical Storm Tammy, these seemed to just give the vines the dose of water they needed to complete the season.
The first weeks of October brought our first harvest, and we were thrilled to have some grapes picked and to begin making our first wines.
Flatiron, Seven Rows, Knob, and Central Block Vineyards
Our younger vines, those planted in 2004, also needed a fair
bit of attention, although because they will not bear fruit
until 2006, these vines underwent a simpler training process.
It is at this point in the vine's life that its permanent trunk
is established and its final form begins to take shape. Each
vine that was planted in 2004 was allowed to grow throughout
that season, and then cut back almost to the ground during winter
pruning, with two buds left per plant. This year, those buds
grew into new shoots that were carefully tied to a steel rod
at several stages throughout the growing season. It is important
that this be done in a careful and timely manner so that the
shoots grow as straight as possible, because once they finish
growing for the season and harden off in preparation for winter,
these shoots will become the vine's permanent trunk. Over the winter, these vines were carefully pruned and readied to bear their first crop of fruit in the 2006 season.
