The sheep have settled in quite well and seem to be adapting to their new surroundings easily. In one week, they have done a pretty thorough job of grazing the 4+ acres of ground cover they occupy and will shortly be moved to another part of the vineyard. Pruning is progressing at a rapid pace and was accelerated by the really sunny and clear weather we’ve enjoyed the last 10 days. It is raining now and that makes the work harder and more unpleasant, as you can imagine.
Pruning typically happens in 3 phases. First, the cuts are made to each vine. This is the most critical part of process and tees the vine up for success (or failure) for the next 2 vintages.
Once all of the cuts are made, our crews go back through the vineyard and pull all of the cut vines and leave them piled in every other vineyard row – where they will be flailed and left for compost for the upcoming year. Finally, the crew returns one more time to tie down the remaining canes which will establish the fruiting vines for the 2022 vintage. As of today, we have made the cuts and are pulling brush. By the middle of February everything should be complete..
The season begins…..
~ Bill Sweet, founder & winegrower
