An update from Robin Dicey – Consulting Viticulturalist
Véraison is not far off now that heat has now finally arrived – so an increase in irrigation is warranted. The time for stress is probably over – and we also need to think a bit about the following season as well. We only found a few bunches showing signs of véraison on the 3rd February when these pictures were taken but by and large I think the rest of the vineyard will just be starting to show a bit more colour from about mid month.
Given the problems of this challenging season, I am now quite relaxed about the balance in the canopy versus crop. It is as if the vines sensed that what lay ahead was going to be difficult, and to try to carry a heavy load was not going to be a great plan. There is not a great deal of thinning required – just a little ‘adjustment’ here and there. But overall things are looking great on the vineyard.