There’s something of a lull between the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. Because we are an agricultural enterprise, we fit right into the ancient seasonal pattern of harvest and celebration. It’s our time to rest, regain our energy, get caught up and then gear up for the new season. Soon we’ll be pruning and starting the whole cycle all over again for the 2008 vintage. I can’t believe it.

As I mentioned in a previous posting, our core vineyard people are not seasonal workers. They are full-time, benefited employees. This is the time of year when they use vacation time to take their families back home for the holidays.

These employees are professionals, and the quality of their work depends on proper execution, as with any craft. Most members of our crew are somewhere in their thirties, have been with us since the start of this project, and were experienced when they joined us.

Our crew is well-trained, and they understand the nuances of what we want to accomplish. That’s important, because sometimes as we learn and evolve, those nuances change. Collectively, we touch every one of our 120,000 vines eight times each year. That’s not me out there touching all our vines, so it’s important that every one of our people understands not only the unique characteristics of each site on our property, but also exactly what needs to be done. They are my only connection to the vines.

Our approach to farming is very labor-intensive. In the winery, Kenneth and one or two assistants can do all the work. In the vineyard, many more people are required to deal with the same amount of fruit. From time to time, we expand our base crew by working with a labor contractor who knows our operation. Again, the quality of communication between our crew and those who help us is paramount to proper execution and it’s based on good relationships.

Kenneth, Nabor and I are also getting better, developing a common language of communication. We try to utilize everyone’s expertise, and we have progressed through trial and error. For example, what does it really mean if I say we need a “lightly opened canopy?” Nabor has taken it upon himself to carefully define such concepts all the way down the line. We all want to create the best, but the mission can be somewhat subjective and change subtly.

We have an on-going power-versus-elegance discussion. We want wines that are complex and concentrated, but balanced and not over the top. It’s fun, because we’re small and all connected to the whole project, from vine to marketplace.

Our next major challenge is re-planting some blocks and applying what we have learned in the last seven years. I’m focused on selecting the right clones. We can grow almost anything in California’s climate, so we must use years of experience about how each clone performs on a site, factoring in the variations of vintage.

Fortunately, we don’t have to factor in variations in people. The same people execute and learn together year after year. We also bring in consultants like Dr. Phil Freese and Zelma Long to stimulate us and give us fresh ideas so that we don’t become complacent.

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