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122 WINES&VINES January 2017 VINTAGE 2016 moved for replanting. Concerns continued about trunk canker dis- eases and virus problems. SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY Jason Haas Partner and general manager Tablas Creek Vineyard Chairman of Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance board Overall, quality looked good, and quantity much improved over 2015. We were right at 3 tons per acre off our estate, which was up 50% over the painfully low crops of 2015 and right at our 20-year average. In character, it's early to tell what things will be like, but two things make us hopeful for its prospects. First is the overall similarity in sequencing, weather and yields to 2014, which we consider our best recent vintage overall. Second is the deep col- ors and intense aromas of what we've been harvesting. Skins on our red grapes appear to have been very thick, and flavors should be intense. It was a warm year overall, spur- ring our earliest-ever bud break, roughly three weeks earlier than normal. After a cool May, the first two-thirds of the summer was very warm, but a cool stretch starting in mid-August and continuing until mid-September allowed us to ease into a harvest that began two weeks earlier than average. The weather warmed back up again in mid-September, and we finished harvest with a flurry, ending Oct. 8, three weeks early. Leafhoppers came late but were as big a nuisance during harvest as we've ever seen. The high stress that the grapevines were under due to the ongoing drought and the warm summer seemed to cause them to manifest more virus this year, but nothing seemed too damaging, and we were happy in the end. Yields were much better than 2015 (up 50%) but really only at our long-term averages. Upward pricing pressure seemed modest. We have been focusing more on night harvesting, particularly on our whites, due to wanting to bring them into the cellar cool and minimizing oxidation. Be- cause we hand-harvest, this meant light towers and careful dropping of fruit during daylight hours before picks. The drought was an issue in the stress that we saw on grapevines. But we've been focusing on plant- ing dry-farmed in recent years, and those blocks seemed to be more successful this year, as we re- ceived about 80% of our normal winter rainfall. Roussanne and Mourvedre (our two most important, and latest-har- vested, grapes) both seemed most impacted by the summer stress. Perhaps because they had to finish their ripening when it was hot in late September and early October. We saw significant defoliation by har- vest and lower sugars and acids. SONOMA COUNTY Rhonda J. Smith Viticulture farm advisor University of California Cooperative Extension Bud break was only a few days later than the previous year, and once again harvest began in mid- YOUR GATEWAY TO TEXAS Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association 2017 Annual Conference and Trade Show www.txwines.org/annual-conference February 16–18, 2017 Embassy Suites Hotel & Conference Center 1001 E. McCarty Lane, San Marcos, TX • 3 Days and Over 42 hours of Educational Sessions • 118 Trade Show Booths • 13 Exhibit Hall Hours • Networking with Texas wineries and growers • Texas size wine tastings Contact office@twgga.org or 817-421-3201 ° ° ° ° ° ° ° ° ° Best yields since 2010, and excellent phenolic maturity. Maggie Tillman Owner and director of marketing Alta Colina Vineyard & Winery Paso Robles, Calif.