You Don't Have to be Crazy to Grow Pinot Noir, but it Helps
Hello and Welcome,
The Willamette Valley Pinot Noir harvest window at Amalie Robert Estate is coming to a close. Time, it turns out, was one of the greatest adversaries of Vintage 2023. Unlike past vintages, where we were engaged in The Great Cluster Pluck through Halloween and beyond, that is not the situation in Vintage 2023.
Closing Time
From a vintage quality point of view, we rely on The Torch to let us know when to begin The Great Cluster Pluck. Those telltale brilliant yellow leaves have never failed us. And it is true again this year, from an aroma and flavor point of view. However, Mother Nature’s gift of a little late August rainfall started a timetable that we must adhere to.
While Botrytis (aka bunch rot) is with us throughout the growing season, it needed a little rainfall to engage. That happened at the end of August. And then there was the mid-September deluge of over 3 inches of warm rain. Bunch rot thrives in warm rain, and there is no holding it back.
As we cruise the remaining unplucked acreage, we see clusters of Pinot Noir that appear perfectly ripe. However, a quick twist of the wrist shows the backside of the cluster is infected with bunch rot. Well… shit.
Don’t fail to miss it!
But there are a few upcoming events that we are looking forward to. We are in the path to view the Ring of Fire partial solar eclipse on Saturday, October 14th. This is when the moon passes in front of the sun, but at such a distance from Earth that it does not fully cover the diameter of the sun. Hence the term ring of fire as that is all we will see of the sun. Depending upon your viewing point, you will miss the sun for about 4 minutes.
This is preceded by Friday the 13th. As far as symbols go, these two events being back-to-back are seemingly significant. Add a couple weeks and the Great Pumpkin will be visiting only the most sincere pumpkin patches. And THEN get this, it will be time to Cluster Pluck the Syrah and Viognier!
It’s Not Over Yet
So here is the deal with those Syrah and Viognier wine berries - they are tough little bastards. And their clusters are typically not as densely packed with wine berries. This means moisture is not collected and trapped inside the cluster allowing bunch rot to take hold. The advantage goes to the winegrower. Neener Neener!
So we press our Vintage 2023 Pinot Noir from fermenter to barrel, watch it rain and wait. Then just around Halloween, Ernie will trudge up and down the rows tasting the wine berries. A quick consult with 3 or 4 weather sites and he looks for the calm before the serious fall rains begin.
At just a single acre, we are nimble and can get that cluster plucking done RFN (Right Farmin’ Now). Ernie has 4 Northern Rhône Syrah clones planted, 3 rows of each and 3 rows of Viognier. Of course, he picks it by clone. Why be difficult, with just a little extra effort, you can be impossible?
The 3 rows of Viognier are first, and then the 12 rows Syrah – 3 at a time. If you take the Syrah first, the buckets are stained red and the Viognier would be a blush wine. This is to be avoided. It is OK to co-ferment Syrah with Viognier, but not the other way round.
We may be crazy, but we are in demand. If you have not taken the opportunity to avail yourself of our iPinot® Pinot Noir Promotion, you can check that out here. That window is also closing soon.
Kindest Regards,
Dena & Ernie