Three Feathers Vineyard Growing Season Report 2021
What a fabulous year we are having so far!
Weather conditions have generally been ideal with a couple of notable exceptions in June. Bud break was the end of April and bloom came mid-June, forecasting harvest at the end of September.
In early June we experienced two days of heavy rain. This was a welcome burst of moisture after a somewhat dry May, but excessive rainfall affects the pollination of the grapes. Grapes are self-pollinators meaning that the formation of the fruit does not require outside factors such as bees. For optimum pollination there should be no rain to wash off the pollen at the critical time. Fortunately, this rain did not coincide here with our bloom cycle and we have had little, if no damage from that event.
Another two weeks later, the entire Northwest was gripped by four days of record breaking temperatures. Temps in the valley reached over 110 degrees during the day and did not cool down very much at night. Once again, our elevation benefited us as our temperatures are 7-10 degrees cooler. Whereas valley vineyards suffered sunburn (black spots on them) and heat stress, we have seen little side effects. Although WE were hot, and some of our garden plants were distressed, the vines just powered on.
At Three Feathers Vineyard, the vines were managed by Jorge Olmedo and his team. This was a tremendous help. Elise and Christine managed the six acres of vines at Torio Vineyard with the help of the vineyard namesake, Torio Sciarratta, our 13-year-old grandson. We pruned, moved wires, sprayed, mowed, weeded, thinned, and controlled shoots for two solid months.
In July, Elise’s husband François and their youngest boy, 16-year-old Felix, joined us from France for canopy work at the top of the vines. Their height and long reach relieved our tired necks.
Click here for a short video of our canopy management team in full swing.
Now the grapes in both vineyards look full and flourishing. While waiting and watching the grapes reach maturity, we beging to think ahead about netting critical vines to ensure a bird-free harvest and to protect the grapes until they are at the perfect ripeness. This chore is difficult as the netting is fine and tends to tangle. You don’t dare put it on the ground.
Our foreman, Scott, has created a unique device for deploying the netting that looks rather like a medieval siege engine. We look forward to trying it out.
We did have time, during all of this, to organize a family portrait session. Cheers from all of us!
