harvest reports
The Story Inside the Story - Viticulture and Winemaking Update
Quality Not On Automatic - July 20, 2004
You can't put exceptional quality on automatic. Every vintage is different and takes a different approach. We also learn something from the year before that we adapt to the following year. It takes individuals and teams that champion uncommon concentration, involvement and attention to details on almost a plant by plant basis to produce a noticeable difference in quality.
At Benziger Family Winery we aim to deliver flavors and aromas beyond varietal character. We want to integrate into our wines the character and personality of Sonoma County, which we identify as warm, round, friendly and a bit rustic. And importantly, incorporate the spirit and enthusiasm of the people who grew it and made it, which I think manifests itself in a wine that is alluring and complex.
Over the last several years, we have worked very closely with our growers to emphasize the importance of hands-on detail work in the vineyard that will produce the added characteristics that I spoke about. This includes specific block by block pruning plans, shoot thinning, shoot positioning, lateral removal, leaf pulling, crop thinning and deficit irrigation. Almost all of this work is done by hand, vine by vine. 20 years ago, almost none of these were ever practiced. Today, I think you can see the difference in Benziger wines that deliver varietal character, a sense of place and the love and care of the people that made them.
Harvest Update - July 2004
The following is an update for the North Coast through the third week of July.
Carneros Chardonnay - Average to slightly small crop size. Two weeks ahead of normal. Quality potential is excellent.
Fumé Blanc - Below average crop size. 1-2 weeks ahead of normal. Quality potential is very good.
Merlot - Below average crop size. Lots of shatter because of weather conditions at bloom. 1 -2 weeks ahead of normal. Quality potential good to very good.
Cabernet Sauvignon - Crop size normal. Smaller than 2003 and will take much less crop thinning to promote high quality. 2 weeks ahead of normal. Quality potential is excellent.
Syrah - Crop size is less than normal. Average harvest time forecast. Quality potential is very good.
Pinot Noir - Crop size is below average. Average harvest time forecast. Quality potential is very good to excellent.
Sorry it's been taking me a while to get this newsletter out. I've been busy rolling out Tribute - our new estate flagship wine. Tribute is the first Demeter Certified Biodynamic wine produced in Napa and Sonoma. The roll out has gone very well and I would like to thank many of you for your great help and support in getting this done. More...
Later------------------Mike
Francisco Soto removes each lateral shoot by hand. Only the laterals on the morning sun side are removed. After this, leaf pulling usually is not needed.
Lateral shoot removal allows more air and light into the core of the plant. This helps to produce higher quality in the skins of especially red grapes.