Graduation Day.

The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet. Aristotle.
I am finished with school not just for the summer, but forever. I will be taking a class for fun next semester, but I have completed a Viticulture degree at Napa Valley College and any other classes I take will not involve riotous amounts of studying or stress-inducing examinations.
I want to take this opportunity to thank Vinomaker for putting up with me; through 2 semesters of Algebra, a politically charged English class and a loathsome, but mandatory, Gender Studies course (I nearly threw in the towel over that one!)
Now, I am feeling just ducky!

And the great heron feeds.

Last seen flying out of the Far Niente vineyard with a gopher in it's beak, this Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) gave the Vinodogs a bit of a fright on our walk this afternoon. Their start probably had more to do with a missed gopher snack of their own than the sight of a 4ft tall bird about 10 feet above their heads. Mr. Heron is currently perched in an oak tree on the periphery of Vinoland eyeing the multitude of gopher mounds in the vineyard as if deciding which one houses this evening's supper. I hope he's hungry and takes two, or more.
And to think Vinomaker and I installed owl boxes for rodent control, maybe we needn't have bothered.

2010 Wine Blog Awards.

Too busy studying for a Biology final I had to take this morning to pay much attention to anything else, I hadn't the foggiest idea that I had been nominated for a Wine Blog Award. One of my favourite bloggers Do Bianchi (who makes me want to drink copious amounts of Italian wine every time I read his posts), was kind enough to point out the very welcome honour to me.
I'm shocked I tell you! Who on earth would bother nominating Vinsanity and it's wine-sodden-viticultural-meanderings? A family member perhaps?
I have never won anything in my entire life and so I am very chuffed just to be nominated...I do however think a winner's badge would look right at home beneath my Liverbird - hint, hint.

What the...?

...it's May 22nd! Frost this morning: Hail this afternoon. Someone should tell Mother Nature that it's supposed to be spring in California!

Freaks of nature.

I spent some time this morning stuffing and thinning shoots in the vineyard until it got a little too windy to continue, so I decided to finish the row I was in and go back inside. But not before I took a photograph of an unusual event that is going on in the canopy right now.
I have no explanation for this phenomenon that occurs in a handful of grapevines every spring, mostly in the Syrah, I just simply refer to it as "that double-meristem-thingy." I'm pretty sure the dividing of the apical meristem, into two growing tips, is simply a spontaneous somatic mutation. The clusters on these shoots never seem to be adversely affected, however it does result in twice the amount of fruit. The more the merrier.

Quailude.

Another cool, rainy day in the Napa Valley...Humph! It was however brightened, in some small part, by this California Quail (Callipepla californica) who had chosen to loiter about in one of the barrel cellars at the winery, most likely to dodge the nasty spring weather we are having. I can't blame him, I'd rather be in a room filled with barrel after barrel of wine too. What Mr. Quail didn't know was that all these barrels are now empty, having been relieved of their aging duties last week.
After taking this photograph with my phone (sorry about the quality), and a bit of barrel-hopping in the opposite direction of the roll-up door, I escorted him out into the rain. Sorry Mr. Quail.

Win early!

While everyone is in a tizzy about the appearance in the Napa Valley of the European grapevine moth, and understandably so, there are many other threats to the vintage that the winegrower must face every growing season. Just this past Monday (May 10th) we had an exceptionally late spring frost. Rain is forecast for this coming Monday and, with bloom nearly upon us, heavy rainfall now would be disastrous for fruit set.
Possibly the biggest headache for winegrowers every year is powdery mildew (Uncinula necator), a fungal pathogen that infects all green, succulent tissue on the grapevine, including leaves and young berries. Powdery mildew (PM) can cause extensive crop loss and poor wine quality if left untreated. Temperature is the most important factor influencing the development of PM: it positively thrives in temperatures between 68-81 degrees F. Vitus vinifera cultivars vary in susceptibility to PM, but the principal control method for preventing infection in all cultivars is the application of sulphur in wettable and dust forms.
It is looking like 2010 is going to be a bumper year for this particular disease as we have had no hot weather this spring. So far this year, each sulphur application in Vinoland has been followed by a rain event making it difficult to get the upper hand in preventing further germination of conidia. But, perseverance is the key and so Vinomaker was out spraying the vines today and could oft be heard muttering to himself the mantra, win early.

A miner whine.

Speaking of miners...Bolognese for dinner tonight, which always calls for something Italian. Vinomaker came up from the cellar with this domestic offering, a 2005 Sangiovese from Miner Family Vineyards.
Miner Family is one of my favourite wineries in the valley. I generally enjoy their wines which, amongst others, include a Stagecoach Vineyard Cabernet sauvignon, a luscious Viognier, and a rather appealing rosato of Sangiovese (a saignée). However, this wine was a little disappointing. Maybe it was a bit old, the fruit had a distinct stewed character, and it was a touch over-oaked. But, it wasn't bad: the acidity did pair well with the sauce. It's just that it's always a tad frustrating when one drinks something that doesn't live up to expectations.

In the vineyard, dwelt a miner.

This is another of my favourite weeds - Miner's lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata). It grows around the edge of the vineyard usually in shaded areas cast by the boughs of oak trees. Not only is it pretty to look at, but it is also edible. I was talking to a Napa Valley restauranter, just yesterday, who told me he regularly collects and uses it's leaves for salad greens. I love the idea of finding fruits and plants growing wild that you can eat; I often pick sorrel from the vineyard and munch on it as I love it's citrus-like flavour, and midsummer will find me in any old bramble patch snacking on sun-warmed berries for hours on end (I'm weird like that.) Unfortunately, the Miner's lettuce is past it's best this time of year as it has already flowered, but I will be waiting for it, balsamic vinegar and olive oil at the ready, next winter.

Flying Fortress.

I spent this evening having dinner in a hanger at the Napa Airport with this B-17 bomber parked outside. Looking most spectacular, with the vine-laden Napa hills as a backdrop, this particular aircraft was delivered too late in 1945 to see action in World War II. It has however been on duty ever since as an airborne reminder of a great debt of gratitude we all owe to the nameless men and women who fought for the freedoms we enjoy today. Present at the dinner were three WWII veterans looking rather hale and hearty, but sadly very much in the minority. I sat across from Deke...isn't that a great name? (I must admit that sometimes I feel like I'm in a John Wayne film.)
As I feasted on BBQ ribs and beans, washed down with a hearty Napa Cabernet sauvignon, I periodically cast a glance outside to where the Aluminum Overcast was positively glowing in the setting California sun.
Remember, freedom isn't free.

In the vineyard piped the bluebird.

There is not too much going on in the vineyard at the moment, so I have a bit of a respite before I have to start shoot thinning.
This western bluebird (Sialia mexicana) and his missus have moved into one of several ornamental bird houses that I have dotted around the vineyard. It has been a lot of fun watching them, first gathering nesting materials and now collecting insects to feed to their hungry brood. I just hope that while out on their foraging expeditions they round up some of those nasty European Grapevine Moths and feed them to their maturing young.

Workers of the world, unite!

Happy May Day to this industrious little bumblebee (Bombus californicus). Although not needed in the vineyard as grapevines are self-pollinating, (their flowers include both stamen and carpel), there are plenty of other trees, shrubs, and flowers for this worker bee to busy herself with.
Vinomaker is out in the vineyard sulphuring the vines and I am in the middle of studying for an exam on Monday, so the only malingerers around Vinoland today are, as per usual, the Vinodogs.

Sprinkle liberally.

The record low temperatures that were forecast for last week did not materialise. Last night it was supposed to only get down to 36 degrees and it got down to 32 instead...weathermen!!!
I took this picture several weeks ago, around the time I did my smudge pot post. I imagined that Napa was going to be in for a frosty April but no, it has just been cool and damp all month long. Of course, the scarcity of freezing overnight temperatures has been great for the vines, thank goodness.
Besides fans, the other primary method of frost protection in Napa vineyards is the utilisation of overhead sprinkler systems, designed to apply .11 inches of water per hour. Overhead sprinklers require upwards of 50 gallons of water per minute per acre: at this rate full protection of the vineyard to temperatures down into the mid-20s can be achieved. These systems derive their effectiveness from the latent heat of fusion which is given up as the water turns to ice on the vine. The mixture of ice and water maintains the bud at 32 degrees, just one critical degree above the point where bud damage begins. The sprinklers then continue until well after sunrise and subsequently the ice melts. This is a rather expensive method of frost protection and an adequate source of water is essential. Sprinklers are however very quiet unlike the wind fans, and very clean unlike the smudge pots. The sprinklers can also be used at other times in the growing season for irrigation, heat suppression, and pest management. This year I am sure the sprinklers will be employed in the certain pesticide-death of the European Grapevine Moth.
Sprinkle liberally with water, add a dash of physics and you have the recipe for a successful harvest in the autumn.

And the wind blows cold.

I am so fed up with this spring weather we are having because it's almost as cool and damp as our winter weather was. Most days I still have to wear a down jacket when I walk the Vinodogs, very unCalifornia-like. I am really ready for some sunshine.
Vinomaker and I travelled up the valley today to get a new battery for one of the John Deeres. Despite bursts of driving rain, alternating with blinding sunshine, it was a very pleasant trip and the Napa Valley never looked prettier.
Closer to home, the ominous clouds actually made for a rather nice photograph of this vineyard that was once the site of an old homestead: now only the chimney remains. Located in the Coombsville area, nestling up against the Vaca Hills, this vineyard is set on a small knoll overlooking the entrance to the valley. I bet this old stack of stones could tell a tale or two.

Crimson and clover.

Vinoland's cover crop is looking quite fetching right now, or at least the bit that Vinomaker hasn't already mowed yet is. Alongside the common vetch and the field peas, the crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum) is blooming like crazy. Vinodog 2 had trotted over and joined me in the clover as I took some photographs, so we both lay back in the warm Napa sun, contemplated life and...well it didn't stay like that for long as V2 ran up the hill after a squirrel ending our pensive, albeit short, respite.
This particular legume makes for a lovely cover crop; it doesn't have a particularly high biomass (compared to some of the cereal grasses often used for cover crop), but it does fix atmospheric nitrogen...and it just looks so pretty.

Happy St. George's Day, 2010.

I traveled among unknown men,

In lands beyond the sea;

Nor England! did I know till then

What love I bore to thee.
~

Happy St. George's Day to my family, friends, and anyone who loves England as much as I do.

While I was studying...

...the Cabernet sauvignon vines finally decided to get going for 2010, better late than never I suppose. I hadn't been down into the vineyard since the weekend, but when I got home from school today, and after I had walked the Vinodogs, I decided to take a peek. Small, pink fuzzy buds and leaves greeted me everywhere. Unfortunately, record low temperatures are forecast for tonight, the first frost in quite a while, so I'm hoping that all the vines come through the night relatively unscathed.

Who are you and why are you in my vineyard?

Look what the Vinodogs found for me today along a short retaining wall, above the Pinot gris vines. It's actually the second time the poochies have found a tortoise for me in Vinoland. You'd think it would be an unusual event, but no. However, this time I cannot identify what type of tortoise, or turtle, it is...oh bother! He (because it is a boy), is now in a large, dry box, with lots of scrunched up newspaper, in Vinomaker's wood shop. I have no idea what I am going to do with him.

Fools rush in.

What's the hurry?
Pinot grigio has to have the funniest growth habit of any variety of grapevine. Whilst the Syrah and Orange muscat vines will show 2 or 3 inches of growth before you actually see the flower clusters, the Pinot grigio pushes everything out all at once. It’s certianly not backwards in coming forwards. Calm down little vine, calm down!

My buddy.

I am so excited, I'm expecting...more grapes that is.
The past two days, I have been tending to the Pinot grigio bench grafts that were planted late in the spring of 2009. All the buds had pushed on last years spindly growth and it was time to cut them back to two buds and place milk cartons around them. Just as I was finishing I noticed that the one rootstock that I had field-budded over to Pinot grigio last September had lost it's protective mound of earth and my handiwork was exposed.
Just take a gander at that bud-swell. This was perhaps my third attempt to marry scion and rootstock in this particular spot in the vineyard. Unlike Syrah, which takes to grafting like a duck to water, Pinot grigio is just so stubborn. Of course, I still have to unwrap the grafting tape and check that the bud is sound, in all its time under wraps it may not have formed a sufficient callous. But from my, all be it limited, field-budding experience I must say that all the signs look encouraging. It is very gratifying to have learned a specific skill and to actually be able to use it and not have to rely on somebody else to perform this service for me.
So fingers crossed and here's hoping that my buddy's non-specific cells have decided to grow up to be mature and functioning xylem and phloem.