AMR: We are excited about how we “build” tannins in our grapes and wines. Tannins contribute to the texture, flavors and structure of wine. A few days ago we looked at the numerical results of our tannin trials, and then we tasted our 2007 Pinot Noirs made from grapes in those trials.

KJ: In 2006, we started analyzing different grape and wine samples, sending them to the lab to run the values of different types of tannins, like catechins, found in seeds, and anthocyanins, or pigments.

First, we just wanted to establish baseline values - where we were. Our goal was to find out what our personal sweet spots are, in terms of what we consider to be great wine, and determine if there are corresponding tannin sweet spots. So … More…

Kenneth and I walked the vineyards yesterday and the sugars are slowly moving upward. There are no green tannins left and the berries seem poised to undergo a shift to full maturity. There’s a moment when the berries jump from being ever so slightly bland to just popping with flavors.

This morning we sampled what we’ve brought in to the winery so far. First we tasted the Dijon 115 Pinot Noir clone from Nugent Vineyard in the Russian River Valley, which we farm. This fruit was harvested last Thursday, September 13, and inoculated yesterday, so it’s like, as Kenneth said, “kid’s juice.” I noticed its nice weight and delicious fruit, and Kenneth thought it had purity and focus, great fruit with good length.

Then we sampled another lot picked the … More…

I’m long overdue for a blog posting. Normally we pick in a week to ten days and our harvest is over. This vintage will be drawn out for over a month, a long time for a small Pinot Noir specialist. The biggest topic has been botrytis, but there’s a lot of misinformation about it. The botrytis was already there – it was not caused by the rain in early October. It had been there and just grew more.

The rain actually refreshed the vines, and we didn’t see any big drops in sugars. Sugar levels have just risen by very small increments this year due to the long, cool season. We had a wet spring, but we didn’t see much early botrytis. The shoots were clean, growth was good, and bloom and set was wonderful. With ample water in the ground and a good set, we saw more and bigger … More…

I’m making my first posting to this blog on the run. It’s been a rollercoaster harvest, frustrating because everything is so spread out due to the cool weather. The second half of September was mild, and the first week of October cold, cloudy and misty with half an inch of rain. We’re just holding out for flavors.

On the bright side, we did get good flavors in many blocks, and we got the majority of our harvest in before the rain. It’s the fruit in blocks that we usually pick at the end anyway that is still out there. We brought in what needed picking, like some Martini selection Pinot Noir that is thin-skinned and might have fallen apart after enduring the rain.

The occurrence of botrytis this year … More…

This vintage is different – not weird, just different. The big heat wave in July made a change. A few leaves got cooked, yes, but the heat made all the vines mature in a fairly short time. Before the heat, we thought we were late, but then we caught up and the weather has been ideal.

The flavors are very good. You really notice them. Because the flavors are there while the sugars are lower, the grapes taste acidic, but they will quickly come into balance. The canopies are very healthy and balanced this year.

This was a tricky year because it looked like the cluster count was low so yields would be low. Some growers were tempted to leave doubles for yield rather than thin back to one … More…