Frosted Leaves and Goodbyes
As we near the end of 2012 and hope the world doesn’t explode by New Year’s Day we say hello to the 2013 vintage year and goodbye to many of our harvest workers. We shed a few tears for each one and wish them the best, but most will not venture too far from the winery. However, a few are heading to far off lands to explore and others to warmer areas to escape the cold. Max Udsen and Patrick Elstead are heading out on a 2 month trip down to South America, flying over to Dubai and then ending in New Zealand to work a harvest “down unda”. The harvest season in the Southern Hemisphere begins in March because they like to do everything differently and of course because their seasons are opposite ours. Malik Hurd is heading back to Hawaii to get his teaching credential while he waits for a firefighting position to open up on the island. Wes Spittler is heading back to Santa Barbera and Chris Klein to San Luis Obispo to spend some time with college buddies and to figure out their next big career moves. Bill Sheffer and Chris Hawkins say they are going, “wherever the lord takes ‘em,” but most likely that means back to New Zealand for both of them. The rest of us are here to stay for now, bunkering down in the office to escape the 28° mornings or bearing them head on out in the cellar.
The below freezing temperatures mean the start of another winter season and time to turn the water off at night to prevent the pipes from exploding. The vineyards are blanketed by frost covered leaves and bare vines soon to be pruned back in preparation for new growth come March. As the vines grow, their stocks become harder allowing less leaves and grape clusters to grow. Pruning allows us to prevent this loss of production, while at the same time it helps us keep the vines as healthy as possible by removing dead or damaged wood. In the end it is all for the health of the vines and to ensure the highest quality of grapes for the next year. The cellar work has died down a great deal as most of the work is geared towards barreling, aging, filtering and bottling the wine. I’ll go into more detail in future blogs. The Tasting Room is decorated in the Christmas spirit and the fireplace is packed with wood and lit every morning. It is impossible to escape the feeling of the holidays around here with cookies, treats and gifts flowing in from wine club members and employees from all around the country. As Luke mentioned in his last blog, the Castoro holiday party was unforgettable as I became part of my first ever crowd surfing train. Check his blog out to see a picture! That’s all for now because I’m running out of time to do some Christmas shopping of my own. Apparently not everyone wants wine for Christmas again, who would have ever thought that?
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from all of us!
Erik
