Winemaker's Notes on 2020 Growing Season

Drew Perry, Winemaker 

"2020 was an easy year to get excited about.  The winter subsided early, but then the spring slowly unfurled. Bud break was a touch later than usual, but we escaped any spring frost. The pace of the growing season allowed us to implement a lot of new vine canopy management techniques with time to assess our work. We were able to bring in a few new tools to not only increase our efficiency in the vineyard, but also quality. By August we were right where we wanted to be to maximize the peak heat of the season. We had great day to night temperature dynamics during this time to allow for great natural flavor development in the grapes. The season ended wetter than usual, but we were able to achieve what we needed to in terms of ripeness in the fruit.

 On one hand the vintage looked average by the numbers, but on the other hand, it gave us our greatest temperature intensity at a time that was the most valuable to fruit development. This growing season was about the only thing to get excited about in 2020. Personally, I look at this being one of the best growing seasons (post 2014) that we've had. It was also the smoothest harvest I've ever been a part of. It shows how having a unified team with experience can really ease a rather large task. 

This vintage's strong suit is aromatic dry white wines. There was more varietal nuance this year than in many I have seen accompanied by more tempered, ripe acidity. In time the reds will have every chance to show their strength as well, but for now, let's let them sleep and wait for colder fall temperatures."
 

Mar 30, 2021 at 7:17 PM

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