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Very informative. Pretty much spells out the issues facing all of us ITB. I'm hearing a bit more optimistic views as wines and micro ferments are finishing up. I think our region of Anderson Valley is going to be fine. We only really had a couple of smokey days (air quality numbers of 150-160) and t...

Hell of an eye there Ed. 120 pounds in the half ton batch, so not very much. Can't wait to do the evening punchdown

We will finish tomorrow. 10 tons today and tomorrow. Our Pinot is just starting to warm up a bit. At last night's punchdown it was cool as I inserted our temperature probe (my arm), but this morning it's not cool anymore. I have a good friend who's giving me a three year old French barrel, which wil...

Right now the only thing is to pick and test post-fermentation. The grapes are shriveling on the vines, and have been subjected in some way to smoke this month, most likely. I picked on the 8th before neighboring Cabs, and am just hoping for the best. I think the smoke at ground level (I am on the ...

The morning punchdown after the crew got going at 5:00 am. Don't need to be starting at 4:30 anymore as we have just a few 10 ton days left. Inoculated the Pinot this afternoon as it was already starting to perk on its own.

Destemed a half ton of clone 23 Pinot Noir for my barrel of wine for 2020. Had to make a bit if a sugar adjustment as it was a touch ripe. Also picked 120 pounds of whole cluster and put them in the bottom of the T bin. I will enjoy the next 7-10 days of hand punching down twice daily and smelling t...

Not a great pic of Anderson Valley fog on its way in this afternoon. Picking more Pinot tomorrow. The end of harvest 2020 is close.

A very fine misty drizzle from the fog this morning. Our final day of picking Chard. Fruit really looks beautiful. Clone 548. Moving over to a Pinot field next. Just a week longer and we'll wrap this mess of a harvest. We feel very lucky to have been able to pick as much as we did, considering how o...

Looooooong friggin day. Just got home at 6:15 after starting at 4:15 am. Had to do the bin retrieval game from fruit delivered yesterday. I'm getting to know every bump between Philo and Kenwood very well. What a wonderful sight to see in Anderson Valley upon my arrival......clear air and the fog ba...

Had to happen.....one carload of my crew didn't come today because yesterday was payday.

Had some company yesterday rounding up bins.

Getting a very firm western wind here in Anderson Valley which makes me think this is the smoke flusher that has been promised.

Going to pass the 400 ton mark today. I'm wearing down, which usually happens around now. Won't pick tomorrow. Hauled 4 tons on my gooseneck to Healdsburg yesterday and took a beating on 128 AND 101. California has the highest gas tax in the nation and the shittiest roads.

My core guys were cleaning bins and preparing equipment for harvest the next day. I kept running back to the house to watch the horror. I was I bit too young for the assassination of JFK, but this was my generations Pearl harbor moment.

Hi, first post here. I find the annual weather thread to be an excellent source of knowledge and news. We will be picking a small amount of Pinot this weekend in Sonoma County. Likely the fruit has been exposed to smoke. Are there any measures one could employ to minimize the effects of smoke? Shou...

Purple air has a spot east of Roseburg at 991. Our worsts day here was 161.

And we continue. Chard today and a nibble of Pinot. Crew doing SO well now. Weather is finally fabulous, thick foggy mornings and not hot in the afternoon. Fruit has equalized from the heat as the vines recover. Another week and we'll be on the back side.

Just had a client pass on 70 tons of Pinot......sucks to be me.

Harvested at 6:30 Tuesday morning. All went smoothly. Safely in fermentation bins. Will do smoke taint testing post fermentation. Will not sell tainted wine. Big financial leap for me but I knew it was time, and given today's miserable weather, so glad I went when I did. I feel so free (now that I ...

We woke to a very slight layer of ash this morning. A few days ago I asked a winemaker what else could go wrong? Covid, early heat spike (more like a week), lighting and rains, another killer heat spike (109 in Philo Sunday), so why the f_ck not should we have ash on the vineyard this morning. Oh an...

Looking at the purple air map, Oregon is bad.

Final Gewurtz pick of 2020. Crop was way off historical average this year.

Kevin Harvey wrote: ↑
September 8th, 2020, 6:41 pm
We are not picking fruit at Family Farm, Skyline, Alpine, Horseshoe or Centennial Mtn. Very painful but I guess it could be worse.

I hope other wineries are faring better. This is pretty devastating for everyone.

Devastating. So sorry.

Ed I think many of these grapes are going make outstanding wines. Looking for the heat to back off soon, we really need that now. Today had two lots picked for clients by 10:30. Both trucks arrive and BOTH my rental and old Blackwelder forklifts take a dump on me. Truckers tapping their feet, winema...

A guy I know who buys fruit from El Dorado says there's ash on most vineyards up there.

Figuring out why we're missing estimates is berry size. Thought be had 24 bins of Gewurtz this morning turns out to be 18. Looking at the berries and they are small.

Had to sign two different smoke taint amendments this week. Clients are in CYA mode. I still think our fruit will be some of the cleanest in the north coast region considering what has happened. I was telling a buddy today that we haven't had a real difficult harvest since 2011 so mathematically we ...

THIS.......f*ck........ WEATHER.

Picking Pinot this morning for 3 different clients. This is one of our best quality blocks. Hope to be done before 10:00 and it gets hot. Luckily it's 55 degrees right now and everyone showed up on a holiday.

Heard first hand that a vineyard in the Laguna area has tested positive for smoke. Don't know the numbers or any details. They will not pick. Going to turn it over to their crop insurance. Casey, have no idea where you're trying to go with this, second post of yours at this point. I have learned, s...

My prediction:
Lawyers gonna get rich on smoke taint and growers gonna get the short end.

Heard first hand that a vineyard in the Laguna area has tested positive for smoke. Don't know the numbers or any details. They will not pick. Going to turn it over to their crop insurance.

Very quiet from Merrill. Have you picked?

This ought to be an interesting day. It's 43 degrees out there now and predicted to reach 94 in Anderson Valley today. Pretty sure we'll be done by 8:00.

Got a whole lotta fruit to pick over the next two weeks. It's Pinot time now.

I heard today of some RRV fruit testing positive for smoke

Pinot Gris was beautiful this year. Slightly down in crop size. Cross that variety off for 2020. Tomorrow we finish a partial Chard field.

As I deliver fruit to Navarro for the 42 straight year it makes me wonder who started the whole wine club/mailing list phenomenon in CA?

Word is wineries are sending interns home because they think many won't crush any fruit. Where are we talking Throughout Sonoma? Anderson Valley? Specifics? Yikes . . . Just scuttlebutt I've heard. IMHO Potter Valley, Redwood Valley and Hopland in Mendo are likely toast. RRV and Dry Creek likely go...

Word is wineries are sending interns home because they think many won't crush any fruit.

Not as much color development in Gewurtz this year. Not enough foggy mornings. Tastes great anyway.

We will pass 300 tons tomorrow, our halfway point. Air in Anderson Valley is clean and we feel for our brothers and sisters in smoky areas.

Without looking I think we're at 260 tons picked. For the moment my crew is doing great. It's costing WAY too much, but this is a results business. I picked my first spec wine today. Thinking there will be a need for smoke free wine this year. Probably going to make some Pinot too. Already seeing ac...

45 degrees in the vineyard this morning, kind of wish we were picking......not!

Slept in until 5:00 this morning. Back at it tomorrow.

Bumping.

Wow crickets on the ETS results! Certainly by now folks must have some results? Had a machine harvest contractor visit today (while we had 2 big picks going on)) and he said most of the north coast is on hold waiting for results. He said some SB was already 26 brix waiting for someone to make a deci...

Great post Nate. Pinot rose' pick this morning, then Chard after that. Hoping to wrap by 10:30 or so. Pinot Gris tomorrow first thing then we do more Chard for two small clients. Nice to check off some boxes. Next week will be nuts coordinating crew/bins/trucking. As long as I can keep my pickers we...

Here in Anderson Valley we've had very little smoke and lots of onshore flow the last few days. Funny but suddenly there is interest in AV Pinot as other areas have concerns. Before harvest I wasn't planning on making any bulk wine, but I'm changing my mind quickly. Second hand story: there have bee...

Will wrap sparkling tomorrow. Over 200 tons. Pinot was good, some Chard fields were either average or below average. Although we picked the Gruner, we move into Pinot Gris, Chard for low alcohol still wine and Pinot for Rose'. Haven't taken a sample in Gewurtz as I'm afraid to know how close it is.

I've always dodged the smoke and thought I was this year too, but It's gotten pretty heavy at ground level the last few days. Now, I'm researching smoke taint winemaking protocols, testing services and insurance coverage. What looked like an excellent vintage seems to be falling apart at the end, a...

Air smells really clean this morning. Three more days of sparkling and we'll wrap that up. Can't take a breath however as Pinot Gris and still wine Chard are ready. My crew seems to have stabilized for the moment at a good level. The Pinot guys really not cooking yet in Anderson Valley so we'll see.

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