26 November 2006
The holiday season is upon us and the harvest season of 2006 is finally behind us! I must apologize for not up-dating this journal but I just experienced one of the longest, slowest harvests of my career (since 1980). I began with Alexander Valley Sauvignon Blanc on September 7 and ended with Dry Creek Zinfandel on November 1. And I really should not complain because many growers were still waiting for Cabernet to ripen in mid-November. Although I make a good deal of estate grown Cabernet (15 tons) for the Passalacqua Winery, their vineyard is on a well-drained bench above the Dry Creek Valley and has never been harvested at the end of October, as it was this year.
The North Coast as a whole had a blessedly cool vintage, following a late start due to a wet spring. But what really slowed things down was the persistent foggy summer mornings and then rain in early October. The fog definitely set us up for Botrytis, and there will be some great dessert wines made in 2006. The rain wasn’t particularly heavy but brought more cool weather and cloudiness. Lots of Zin was just hovering near perfect ripeness when it rained; a most frustrating situation! The weather slowly improved, but the daylight hours were waning and nighttime temperatures were gradually dropping. As I began sampling fruit again I noticed how fragile the grape skins had become. One expects this in very ripe Zin but even in Cabernet after the rain the skins almost slipped off, leaving the denuded pulp still attached to the rachis. Due to this rather strange skin condition, along with the mold present in so many vineyards, 2006 was not a year for extended maceration. The skins were just too easily broken down during punch downs and pumpovers.
By the 9th of November, all the Cabs were pressed off and then barreled the next week. Another striking occurrence of 2006 is the speed with which the malo-lactic fermentation is proceeding. I expect all the red wines to be finished and rackable by the end of December. Chardonnay, of course, is just poking along in barrel. Pinot was through in three weeks! It has remarkable color, due to some judicious tannin additions during fermentation, and is beginning to show fruit aromas again. The Pinot and Chardonnay will remain on their lees, stirred every 2-4 weeks, until next summer’s bottling.
One of the greatest wine making pleasures is to regularly taste each wine in barrel as it develops. If you’d like to participate and give your feedback, write to contacts@davenportwines.com and schedule and appointment with me at the Passalacqua Winery in Dry Creek Valley.
