Wines & Vines

18 Wines&Vines March 2015 wine industry news N apa, Calif.—Wine grape grower Jen- nifer Thomson ordered pruning of her family's Napa vineyards in January. But driving through Napa's back roads Jan. 31, the fourth-generation grower saw several un- pruned grapevines showing signs of bud break. Thomson's family has farmed vineyards on the Napa side of the Carneros AVA since 1938, with a current total of 90 acres. The vines dis- playing bud break were not part of Thomson's vineyards but on some nearby rolling hills. Thomson ordered her staff of four to start pruning during the record-dry month of Janu- ary. "We were among the first to do it in Carne- ros," she said. "Taking advantage of the dry period keeps disease pressure low." Thomson noted that seeing bud break in late January is "stressful for growers, labor and vines." Francisco Araujo, senior viticulturist for Atlas Vineyard Management, which farms ap- proximately 1,000 acres in California's North Coast, Santa Barbara County and Oregon's Willamette Valley, commented that 2015 is shaping up as an early growing season. "There is not yet generalized bud break, but growers are seeing signs of an early onset, especially in vineyards where soil is shallower and the vines are weaker." For growers who have pre-pruned, "It's not a big deal," he said. Atlas started pruning in Sonoma County in January, and he said he expects pruning to last until early March. "In Santa Barbara, the vine cycle starts earlier than in the North Coast," Araujo noted. Members of the Santa Barbara County Vintners also reported noteworthy activity in the vineyards. From Bien Nacido and Solomon Hills Vineyards in the Santa Maria Valley, vine- yard manager Chris Hammell wrote that he's seen no bud break but, "We had fairly wide- spread regrowth after harvest, primarily from the tops of the shoots/canes. This is very un- usual. We are seeing bud swell early, as of Feb. 1, in our warmest sites. "We have had a very mild winter and would actually prefer frost during this dormant time," Hammell said. "From a timing perspective, last year was very early. It's really too soon to tell, but things are looking pretty much the same." There's been some bud break on pre-pruned canes of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay at Cebada Vineyard in Lompoc, owner Sandy Newman said in early February. Generally, he expects bud break the third week of February, same as in 2014. Ampelos Cellars' vineyards in the Santa Rita Hills had not shown any bud break as of Feb. 2, according to Peter Work. "We see some cotton pushing up on the Pinot Noir blocks and a tiny bit on the Syrah, very similar to last year, when we also had a warm January." —Jane Firstenfeld California Vineyards Report Early Bud Break After Strange Winter RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY WINEGROWERS A Pinot Noir bud emerges on a vine at Leras Vine- yard in California's Russian River Valley.

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