Weather station.

Investing oneself in a project such as growing wine can turn to an exercise in obsession. I suppose that having scientific training predisposes me to some sort of formalized approach to seeking an understanding of what is happening in the vineyard.

So, this weekend, I installed a small weather monitoring station at the top of the current Aglianico block. (more…)

Circling the drain

A small portion of planted vines do not “take”. The reason for a few newly planted vines failing may be attributable to an incompatibility between soil and rootstock, problems with the soil itself: fertility, pH, deficiency or excess of key minerals and inadequate moisture, as well as pests: rodents, nematodes, insects, bacteria and viruses.

It seems that something is causing one of my vines to fail. It’s been a slow decline that brings to mind an unsavory turn of phrase mumbled and whispered in ICUs and ERs: “circling the drain” (more…)

Irrigation equipment.

I remember when I got my first “real” electric guitar: a Korean-made Fender Squier Stratocaster. Until then I had been playing a half-sized “Strat copy” with a 1″-thick plywood body and two single-coil pickups. The used Strat sounded so much better than my Cort (as in: the furniture manufacturer). I had a real electric guitar now, and I would certainly soon achieve the virtuosity of my guitar-god heroes. The fact that I went to Medical School and not Music School is a clear illustration that this is not the way it goes.

This past weekend, I finally put in a real drip irrigation system in my vineyard. Now I feel like I have a real vineyard. My wine, no doubt, will rock the world… (more…)

The first mistake.

This past weekend was a busy one for me as I put in a lot of work at my vineyard. I assessed progress and identified the first potential mistake. Because of the heat, work can only be done in the mornings, so I spent Friday and Saturday morning at the site. Nevertheless, this is a learning experience through and through.

When we put in the vines, my father felt we could add one row - about 9 feet lower than I had initially planned. As it turns out, two of the vines in the lowest row now get some shade from the ficus tree just down-slope. Fruit producing plants need sun exposure to synthesize food and building blocks as well as ripen fruit. So much about planning a vineyard is about the details. It’s not just the climate and soils that matter. Row orientation and row and vine spacing are important. Lesson learned.

Ironically, these two are the most vigorously growing vines in the whole row. Go figure. Whether this proves to be a problem will be borne out in time. Hopefully, we can trim the tree to give these vines more sun. (more…)

Pushing shoots.

I went out to my small vineyard this morning to water and check the progress of the vines. After planting, I had covered each vine with a mound of straw. In communication with Sam Caselli at Novavine, I learned that the planted vines do not need to be mounded over with soil - straw will do just as good of a job insulating them from extreme temperatures.

I visit the site every other day to water and have been peeking under the straw to see how things are coming along. Initially, I was concerned because five or maybe six vines (of 44) were not showing any signs of budding. Today, I am happy to report, I have bud break on all 44 vines. (more…)

Aglianico benchgrafts hydrating before planting.

This past weekend, I put in 44 Aglianico vines on a steep slope smack dab in the middle of Los Angeles. Growing something is an investment. It’s an investment of time, resources, energy and self. This is pretty much the case regardless if you grow tomatoes and eggplant on your patio or a commercial vineyard. It’s also a learning experience. You learn to pay attention to the soil, the sun and the plant.

In the past year, I have developed a friendship with Jeff Miller of Suisun Valley’s Artisan Family of Wines. We connected over a post he wrote for Jo Diaz’s blog and things went from there. Jeff came over for dinner one day and brought some of his wines. Among them was a bottle of Montepulciano. This is not a commercial wine, but a trial batch made in carboys. I was instantly taken by it: bright, pretty red fruit with a touch of leather. We began to talk about matching variety to site. Montepulciano is a late ripener that maintains distinct character and acidity in hot climates like the Suisun Valley. My wine growing aspirations were re-awakened. (more…)