As One Season Ends, Another Begins
By John Yanes
Block 4 Cabernet Sauvignon, November 2022
On a recent trip through the vineyard, I took some time to reflect on this year’s growing season and the season to come. Harvest is winding down now and the vineyard begins its transformation from vigor to dormancy. Our tasting room is decked to the halls with holiday cheer, beautiful displays, and a magnificent Christmas tree. The cellar crew is busy bottling, barreling, and blending as the vineyard team prepares the vines and soil for their winter slumber. Walking through the vineyard is essential throughout the growing season and I never miss an opportunity to enjoy the breathtaking scenery.
Block 7 Cabernet Sauvignon, November 2022
As autumn turns to winter, I can't help but feel melancholy during this time of the year as the changing landscape turns from green to brown, and thoughts of home and the festive gatherings we'll have in the weeks to come. The vineyard is a spectacular mix of orange, red and brown now; a sign of their surrender to Winter’s inevitable coming. Blocks 6, 7, and 8 are a sea of gold and yellow except for the newly planted Sauvignon Blanc; its bright green leaves peeking out of their first-year grow tubes. The Cabernet and Zinfandel in Blocks 4 and 5 have yet to show their fall colors but the trees, the hills, and the surrounding agriculture are ablaze with yellow and gold. Looking down one particular row, the vines resemble great wooden walls leading me onward up a gentile slope that ends at the base of two magnificent oak trees. From another view, the Santa Lucia Mountain Range rises in the distance providing an incredible backdrop of blue against the Autumn leaves. It's good for the soul to take advantage of any opportunity to view this seasonal phenomenon considering the Paso Robles climate and the rich palette of its seasonal colors.
Block 7 Chardonnay, November 2022
The vineyard is silent at the moment with the exception of the occasional hawk or crow call and the distant rumble of a lone tractor weaving in and out of the rows. The vineyard team is busy ripping the soil and removing weeds in between the vines and prepping for fertilization in order to pump up the vines before they go into dormancy. Cover crops are being evaluated based on soil and vine health data and their ability to attract beneficial insects and hinder the accumulation of detrimental pests. We like to think that the end of harvest means we all get to relax but as we witness the end of one season we know that the next has just begun.