Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/101495
CALIFORNIA Amador County���Mendocino County CALIFORNIA Reporting from these counties: ��� Amador ��� Calaveras ��� El Dorado ��� Lake ��� Mariposa ��� Mendocino ��� Merced ��� Monterey ��� Napa ��� Sacramento ��� San Benito ��� San Joaquin ��� San Luis Obispo ��� Santa Barbara ��� Santa Cruz ��� Solano ��� Sonoma ��� Tuolumne ��� Yolo Amador, El Dorado, Calaveras and Tuolumne counties; Other regional designations: Sierra Nevada foothills What may distinguish the Sierra foothills this year from the wild optimism of yet another (yawn) ���fantastic��� regional California vintage is a certain maturity���in both the vineyards and the managers who tend them���combined with market influences, neighborly cooperation and the luck of the weather. Especially for those who held (or broke their backs to finagle) the two factors that ultimately made the difference: water and labor. Pests/diseases: 2012 may be the year that growers here sprayed more times for powdery mildew than in any years previous, resulting in an audibly squeaky clean harvest. Some growers also hedged their bets and applied Botrytis sprays (practically unheard of here in the land of sunshine), along with aggressive canopy thinning, only to have a heat wave come in the final weeks of September to deny the chance of rot in even the tightest Zinfandel clusters. Supply/demand: Nearly every grower I spoke to told of higher than expected yields due, presumably, to the previous year���s poor crop load, yet most retained the quality the winemaker was seeking and more than happy to take. Indeed, wineries could not get enough of that abundant foothill fruit this year. Technology/techniques: Sporadic Zinfandel ripening was a problem due to larger clusters, more secondary buds and a reluctance to properly thin the crop after two years of poor yields. Logistics: With a hot and heavy crop to bring in, many growers harvested their crops at night (common in the North Coast, but here a first for many) due to Napa contract demands and the need to avoid the heat. Using high-powered headlamps, the jobs got done without mishap, although some crews balked at a midnight start time or a 12-hour nighttime shift. Growers reported waiting for available labor, sometimes up to a week. The result of the labor shortage and crunched harvest time could be higher alcohol wines than some would prefer from those blocks. Varieties: The Zinfandel crop quality was deemed ���quite average��� by some, as compared to ���superior quality��� foothill Rhone and white varieties. VINTAGE 2012 fruit. Regardless, fruit still ripened a little later and slower than normal. Pests/diseases: Little to none. Technology/techniques: Wineries had the luxury of picking Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc over more time than usual, as the reds were ripening a bit slower than normal. There was plenty of room in the winery in the beginning of the season. Interestingly, many lots of fruit came in with lower sugar and slightly higher pH compared to other seasons, requiring little adjustment by winemakers. Varieties: Yields turned out to be a bit bigger than expected. Pinot Noir started later than normal due to a bigger than expected crop and cooler temperatures in the coastal areas. The Zinfandel crop was a bit bigger than normal. Petite Sirah and Merlot were mostly picked before the rains arrived in the third week of October. This should be a good vintage for Bordeaux varieties. Glenn McGourty Farm advisor, University of California Cooperative Extension Lynn Wunderlich Farm advisor, University of California Cooperative Extension Mendocino and Lake counties What a difference a year makes: 2011 was a year of trials and tribulations, whereas 2012 seems to be one of those special vintages where most varieties performed well, and good wine will be possible from nearly everywhere. Weather: December, January and early February were relatively dry. Rain fell in March and April, bringing precipitation to more normal levels, but rainfall was below average for most places. Temperatures were a little on the cool side, which delayed bud break and flowering in many areas. However, it was not a frosty spring, and this was much appreciated by growers concerned about having adequate water supplies to tend their crop in 2012. Areas near the coast were foggy many mornings during the summer. Meanwhile, in the interior north coastal valleys, weather was very optimal, with temperatures in the upper 80��s and low 90��s, with few really hot spells that would burn Workers pick Cabernet Sauvignon for BNA Wine Group at the Gaffney Vineyard in Napa County���s Pope Valley. Win es & Vin es JA N UA RY 20 13 101