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Cook Vineyard Weekly Newsletter 7.2.12

July and August are the months when the energy and growth moves towards maturing the grapes. Even though the grapevines have some foliar growth this time of year most of the energy is directly towards the newly formed grape clusters.

So what are the crews doing in the vineyard this time of year?

The answer is a lot of things. More clearly our major task is removing the lateral growth in the fruit zone opening the grape clusters to filtered light which helps them grow. At the same time we are removing unwanted trunk suckers and hedging the tops of the vines. This pass also includes removing some fruit from short clusters that will struggle to ripen its fruit.

Harvest is about 75 days away, so it is important to direct most of the energy into fruit growth. Veriasion (when the grapes turn from green to red or to translucent in white varieties) is about a month away. Even though it is too early to tell Vintage 2012 seems to be a larger than normal crop and may be one of the best years in the past four to five years quantity wise.

If anyone wants to visit us in the vineyards to learn more about the world of viticulture, please call us at 707.490.8921. Also check our website www.cvmgrapes.com.