My Stuff

Sunday Sept 20
Chardonnay picking started Friday 9/4, and warmer temps around Labor Day weekend propelled harvest in the following week. About half of the Chard was picked by 9/11. We had a beautiful morning for our Blessing of the Grapes and Harvest Toast, held 9/10 with Father Xavier from the Carmelite Monastery in Oakville. He was amused at the opportunity to perform a blessing at a “Franciscan” winery. We always use our Estate Larsen Chardonnay for the blessing, as vineyard manager Matt Ashb… Continue

HARVEST 2009 – Franciscan Estate and Mount Veeder Winery

August 28
Harvest has begun! We’re slowly getting into gear with Sauvignon blanc that started picking at a leisurely pace on August 17. We began with young vines, which are often precocious due to low crop loads. Harvest continued with old vine Sauvignon blanc during this past week of 8/24. Due to moderate temps in the 70’s or low 80’s, it’s been a very measured pace, no rush or urgency, getting the sugars just where we want, around 21-22… Continue

This was one of the many amazing talks from the TED conference that I recently attended. I will add more of my thoughts and comments on my experience in the future. Enjoy!

Willie Smits talk

In looking through some of our educational archives, I came across this great series of photographs from the 2006 harvest in Estancia's Stonewall Vineyard, located in Monterey County. You might be wondering why they were harvesting at night – here’s a few thoughts…

1. Durin… Continue

For those who may not be completely familiar with the Napa Valley, our climate here is ideal for growing wine grapes. In short, it doesn't usually rain here from about May through October - 6+ months of no rain!

So, when the weather gets hot, especially at this time of year when th… Continue