Chardonnay

It's an interesting time of year for the wineries--the lull before the storm, so to speak. The grapes are being tested daily for Brix level (sugar content). The longer they ripen in the sun, the higher the Brix. The vines are pruned so that the fruit hangs below the bottom branches so that they get indirect sun but are still shaded by the leaves from the intense midday heat.

Four years or so ago, the summer was so cloudy and cool, and the fruit was so slow to ripen, that the canopy of leaves was removed to prevent mildew. A week later there was an intense heat wave and many wineries lost a large part of their yield because the fruit turned to raisins. Other years, the weather is so warm that the crush comes early and everybody is scrambling at the same time to get their fruit in.

All was calm this morning as we drove past all the old estate vineyards--Kunde, Lanark, Chateau St Jean and St Francis to name but a few. Heavy clusters of grapes fringe the lowermost branches of the vines, which grow horizontally along special wires. Only the oldest vines are "head pruned", or allowed to take on a shrub like shape. Their gnarled trunks and twisty branches produce lower yields, but the wines made from their fruit are highly prized. Each venerable plant is treated with the respect it deserves. I love to drive past them, like a bunch of very old men, enjoying the sun, and imagine the changes they have seen since they were planted a hundred years ago.

In a few weeks, the roads will be crowded with truckloads of crates and grapes, the fields will be alive with pickers and the wineries themselves will be going full bore to bring in the grapes, crush them and begin the fermentation process when the fruit is at its peak of sweetness. Once the crush begins, the winemakers will be working long hours making all the many decisions, large and small that culminate in the perfect bottle of wine, which we are about to open and enjoy at our new table on the patio….