A Season in IGs

Mid way through October.

I honestly start to get giddy.  The end is in sight.

 Two more weeks of bringing in fruit. Two weeks. 2!

2013 Season has flown by.  I mark each year with the passing of the growth stages in the vineyard.  From the first leaf tip showing to the fruit being harvested and sent to the winery, I find so much beauty in the work I do.

The spring of 2013 was warm!

 Mid 80's in April gave way to rapid shoot growth with bloom much earlier than past years.  

The anticipation!

A hot summer meant an early verasion.

The berries get soft.

The red grapes go from little peas to beautiful red and purple grapes

Then fall comes along.  

Harvest is hard work. 

But twice a week I drive around with our winemaker, tasting berries, making enology decisions while analysing fruit quality and the fermentation it is destine for.  

Always learning

Some viticulture scientists at WSU IREC in prosser helped to identify this herbicide damage. Everyday I find something new, always learning on the job.

Happy Wednesday!

Time is flying by in the Vineyard!

Hot days and lots of sunshine has had a large impact on the vines! Veriason, the moment the grapes go from hard green peas to soft translucent yellow or red grapes is upon us!

Veraison in Cinsaut

The year has been interesting, hail in june and july damaged some wine and juice grapes, corn and other crops above Sunnyside.  Besides that, it has been a, dare I say it, Normal year!  Everyone was worried as disease pressure was high for the first half of the growing season but to every one's relieve, 2011 has not repeated itself!

Powdery Mildew Single Berry Infection

Owens Meat Market

The word is out.  

Owens Meat Market in Cle Elum has the best meat in Washington.  I personally am a poor judge (for the last 5 years I have only eaten animals that live in water...) but my father and fiance both agree, if you haven't been to Owens, you are missing out.

After a weekend in Seattle, I stopped for gas in Cle Elum and decided to surprise Chad with an Owen's Filet Mignon.  I don't think his mouth has stopped watering since I got home.  I think we will open a bottle of Shining Hill tonight to pair.

Where wine has taken me

The wine industry opens the doors for travel all over the world.

Taking in the sights of a walled city in France

The first 18 years of my life I had never traveled past Montana to the east, as far as Sun Peaks Resort (my favorite ski destination) to the north and California to the south.  I knew there was more to the world than what I had seen and put travel onto my bucket list.

During my Sophomore year in college at Washington State University I applied for a study abroad program based in Toulouse, France focused on the French wine industry and European agriculture.   Not only was I selected but I was honored a scholarship to boot!  Europe was amazing, more to come on my experiences for those amazing 3 months.

Large Counoise clusters going through verasion.

After college, wine took me to my first crush job in Blenheim, New Zealand.  I was able to travel before grape harvest started and once it did, I worked 12 hour shifts 7 days a week for 6 weeks.  It was exhausting but one of the most amazing experiences I have had. One can learn about making wine from a book or class but it isn't the same as getting your hands dirty and doing punch downs, dig outs, inoculations, and additions.

Digging a tank of Pinot Noir skins in New Zealand

What travel destinations are on your bucket list?  I know I will go back to New Zealand and would recommend for everyone to go!

It takes a lot of good beer to make great wine!

Decorated with photos of the wild horse of the area, an old fashioned bar and a saddle seat for photo taking, the Horse Heaven Hills Brewery is quite a little gem in Prosser.

Horse Heaven Hills Brewery located off main street in down town Prosser, next to AutoZone

Whether it is after work, before an event or on a sunny Saturday afternoon, a beer from Horse Heaven Hills hits the spot.  With many different styles and flavors of beer there is a beer for everyone.  Hefe, the stallion stout, Honey Girl, Long Live Lager, IPA, and Smokin' Anvil, there really is no way to go wrong.  My personal fav has to be the Delta, a lightered style IPA with delta hops.  Nothing is better than driving through the hop fields from Yakima to Prosser and then enjoying the wonderful nector they produce.  

Carol brewing courtesy of Horse Heaven Hills Brewery

The brewery is located in the tasting room and if you are lucky you can catch the owner Gary brewing while his lovely wife Carol pours at the bar.  Need a place to catch the game? HHH Brewery is it.  Need a nice cold one after wine tasting with the wife all day? HHH is the perfect location.  They are even joined with a BBQ joint, Hog Heaven, so you can get a nice rack of ribs while enjoying your frosted beverage. 

Caroline, Yun, Myself and Becca enjoying a beer before the Prosser Bachelor Auction

Is it Raining Outside?

There is one tool that every farmer in Washington BETTER use and one every other person SHOULD...

Ag Weather Net is a WSU real time weather website with weather stations littered throughout the state of Washington that updates from these 130+ stations every 15 minutes.  Wow!  The information is real time and the only prediction is sent out as a weekly email that both recaps the last week and also gives the expected general weather for Washington

The sites give you access to all historical data for the sites, along with their current air temperature, humidity, evapotransporation, rainfall and much, much more.  In my life, I use Ag Weather Net to decide which vineyards to look at, if it is indeed raining where the weather man says it is and also for the disease pressure.

Farmers are facing one of the most difficult time of the year.  Cherries can be ruined by rain and Ag Weather Net allows farmers to know in real time if it is raining close to or even at their site.  If you have the money, WSU will even place a weather station at your desired location.  Warning: it does cost a few thousands, of course. 

I am currently all over the Powdery Mildew model for Southeast Washington.  Many farmers  use Ag Weather Net as a tool to decide their fungicide program but looking at a disease model that says you have 80-100% pressure for a terrible disease that can ruin your year can stress a farmer out, let me tell ya. 

I encourage you to check it out! www,weather.wsu.edu  Even in everyday life it can be great to know if it is really raining at the town next door or if the weather man is wrong.