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January 2015 Wines&Vines 137 SoLAno CounTy Suisun Valley George Richmond Viticulturist, nord Vineyard Services the 2014 harvest in suisun Valley brought a third great year in a row with good yields and great growing conditions. most of the experts will say it isn't possible to have more than two bumper crops back to back. Judging by the early Chardonnay and pinot Noir tons per acre, we all could see Cabernet was also going to be above average. Weather: it was an early season with great consistent growing weather. We did en- counter a freak thunderstorm sept. 26 that dropped 3 inches of rain in less than three hours. this not only made it difficult to get harvest tractors in the field, it caused sugar levels to drop and never recover. Pests/diseases: powdery mildew pressure was high throughout the spring and early summer months. the mild and consistent warm summer months led to a spike in grape mealybug numbers, which had to be addressed before they moved from the canopy to the clusters. spider mites were also an issue due to the drought conditions, af- fecting even the higher vigor vines, which is unusual. suPPly/demand: promis- ing. the bulk wine market and two large wineries moving into the valley have cemented peo- ple's faith in our ability to grow premium grapes. teChnology/ teChniques: Weather sta- tions. Wind, temperature and the powdery mildew risk index allow growers to maximize ef- fectiveness of spray treat- ments and minimize losses to diseases. Challenges: Labor is often an issue; Napa tends to lure workers away for higher pay. Varieties: good growing degree-days allowed even the most stubborn ripening vari- etals like petit Verdot and gra- ciano to reach maturity. vintage 2014 100% CUSTOMER SATISFACTION NEW: "ZERO Waste" Technology STARS/Electrodialysis Dial in your Tartrate Stability & Sweet-spot your pH/TA profile MEMSTAB – The New Standard! Combine in-line, single-pass, Crossflow Filtration With Tartrate Stabilization GUARANTEED TARTRATE STABILITY Red, White & Rose Wines QUALITY ENHANCEMENT NO ADDITIVES NO CHILLING Visit us! Booth 1102 Call: 1.707.486.4651 Pre-Owned, Rentals and Mobile Services Available East & West Coast This report and similar harvest reports for the 2013 and 2012 vintages can be found in the digital editions of Wines & Vines available at winesandvines.com/digitaledition.