Report from Winemaker Jef on the Aridus vineyard as of June 3

We are starting to see the first signs of summer as the heat has been cranking up the last two weeks. We had incredibly early bud break. Last year bud break was April 1, with Sauvignon Blanc being the first varietal to “push.” The other varietals took 3-4 weeks to start showing growth.

This year, we had 6” shoots on the Malbec. That’s unusual. It’s typical for Sauvignon Blanc to be the first to show growth and it’s often the first varietal that we crush.

I’m going to guess, based on the weather we’re seeing, that this year everything will come in at the same time. That means it’ll be a challenging year. But….a lot can happen between now and when we pick. If we get decent heat in the summer, that will cause differentiation in different varietals since they all will respond differently to the heat.

Out in the vineyard right now we’re seeing 8 – 10”  long shoots in the canopy rising up in the air from the Malbec. It’s incredible how fast the vines can grow. The berries are almost full size now, but without any color. That process of veraison may be a while off still. As the hours of sunlight increase and then dwindle, that exposure will keep pushing the growth.