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60 WINES&VINES January 2018 VINTAGE 2017 FRESNO COUNTY George Zhuang Farm advisor University of California Cooperative Extension 2017 was a very challenging year for southern San Joaquin Valley winegrowers. Bud break was gen- erally normal for this area, but early bunch counts were lower than the historic average. Once the season started, some growers reported difficult powdery mildew control due to the weather that favored high disease pressure. Beginning in June, heat waves caused a significant amount of sunburn and heat damage to grapes. Specifically, vineyards ex- perienced approximately one week of maximum daily tempera- ture above 105° F in June and July, with another significant heat wave before Labor Day weekend. After the onset of véraison, severe bunch rot issues were observed on several varieties including Zinfan- del, Colombard, Thompson Seed- less and even Rubired, which is rarely prone to rot. Bunch rot in many vineyards was quite signifi- cant, and vine mealybug was also a big issue for some growers. When the season moved close to the har- vest, delayed ripening was reported on certain varieties such as Colom- bard, and poor color was seen on some red wine grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon. Overall, yields were generally down across the southern San Joaquin Valley due to low bunch counts, powdery mildew, sunburn and bunch rot. However, the more recent plantings tended to outperform the older blocks in terms of production, and some new vineyards have much higher tonnage per acre. LAKE AND MENDOCINO COUNTIES Glenn McGourty Farm advisor University of California Cooperative Extension This vintage from Mendocino and Lake counties was pretty good. The vines loved getting lots of rain. Yields were good but not ex- ceptional. We experienced several weeks of very hot weather, but we were able to manage irrigation well and got to harvest with mini- mal sunburn. It worked out for most wineries, as grapes ripened over a long period, and they didn't tie up tanks for too long. Nice tasting fruit with a bit having low acid/high pH that needed fix- ing in the winery. Red fruit stalled a bit during ripening, and it took a while for sugars to go up. This should be a great vintage. We were mostly finished when the fires hap- pened, and not many lots of fruit were affected. There were some vineyards that got singed. MONTEREY, SAN BENITO AND SANTA CRUZ COUNTIES Larry Bettiga Viticulture farm advisor University of California Cooperative Extension Yields varied depending on vari- ety and location, with most vine- yards having average to below-average crops. The heat CALIFORNIA REGISTER YOUR TEAM TODAY symposium.oregonwine.org February 20 & 21 Oregon Convention Center P O R T L A ND LEARN Industry leaders present the latest in wine business, climate and tourism trends Taste wines from innovative vineyard and winery experiments around Oregon CONNECT The Northwest's biggest wine industry trade show with more than 170 exhibitors Mix and mingle while enjoying Oregon wine and hors d'oeuvres at the Soirée GROW Insights and lessons on developing business strategies across diverse sales channels Get grapegrowing and winemaking strategies to address today's biggest challenges @ORWineSymposium #ORWineSymposium