Winemaker's Corner

Each year Mother Nature plays an enormous role on the outcome of Spring Mountain District (SMD) wines. In the following segments, SMD winemakers discuss the weather conditions for a specific year and the impact on the year’s wine.

2007
Growing Season and Harvest

The growing season and harvest of 2007 definitely kept us on our toes! Spring of 2007 was relatively warm and vines budded out a little earlier than usual.  Mid-summer temperatures during 2007 were mild, but the last week of August warmed up, and by September 1st, harvest had begun for Keenan.

Harvest continued, but only at a slow pace.  Blocks with good exposure and in warm areas were picked, but most vineyards within Spring Mountain District seemed to slow down and take their time ripening.  The third week of September became unseasonably cool (cold!) and we even had some rain on September 22.  Portions of Spring Mountain District hadn't even started harvest, while those that had came to a grinding halt.

It warmed up slightly during the end of September and early October, pushing certain vineyards towards ripeness.  By October 14th some wineries and vineyards were all but finished with harvest, while others had a large majority of fruit still hanging on the vine.  Then, in mid-October, a rain storm blew through the Napa Valley dropping over two inches of rain. It appeared that winter had come early, and many winery and vineyard folk were not sleeping well because of it.  Luckily the rain ended and clusters dried quickly, allowing later ripening vineyards to pull in the last of their fruit and finish off the harvest.

Overall we were extremely pleased with the quality of the 2007 harvest.  The '07 Chardonnay is showing bright acidity while the reds show amazing depth and richness, yet soft, well integrated tannins.  Keenan's 2007 total tonnage was about average for Chardonnay and Merlot, while Cabernet Sauvignon delivered its highest yield to date. 

Matt Gardner
General Manager

2006
2006 was one of the wettest in recorded history on Spring Mountain reaching 110 inches in some areas. The cold wet winter delayed bud break to mid - late April and though the fairly warm spring conditions provided some catch up, bloom and veraison were also delayed resulting in a later than normal harvest. The summer conditions were similar to 2005 with average temperatures in June and warmer than normal conditions in July, but July was even more severe than the previous year with 13 days approaching or broaching the century mark, and one weekend that recorded temperatures of 113 and 110. Some sunburn resulted from these very hot days, but it was early in the growing season and the vines responded with little or no damage. August and September were idyllic and maturation proceeded smoothly through those months setting up perfect harvest conditions in October and a bit into November. The only blip on the radar during the harvest period were minor rain events in early October and early November, but the rains caused more inconvenience than real problems. Most wineries were finished by the second week of November with tonnage a bit on the shy side of normal and with fruit quality in the same range as 2004 and 2005.

2003
This year was another interesting year on the mountain as Nature again tested our trust and patience while we coaxed our vines through the season.

Bud break was on schedule as warm weather in April welcomed the vines into the new growing season. High temperatures climbed in May and then fell abruptly in the middle of June. The wild Mariposa Lilies that grow in the meadow next to our vineyard bloomed in the first week of June, indicating that the season was on schedule.

High temperatures stayed mostly between the high 70s and high 90s from late June through September. There were three distinct temperature spikes into the high nineties during the month of September and many growers were faced with the dilemma of picking too early or waiting too long – especially in the Valley where daytime temperatures were much warmer. On September 22nd we had a high of 98 degrees and some of the grapes on the mountain started to roll in.

As often happens on the mountain, October brought an extended period of ideal ripening weather with temperatures mostly in the high 70s and low 80s. Those with patience were rewarded as the seeds became large, fat and dark brown and the flavors developed to full maturity. During the last week of the month the weather warmed to the mid and upper 80s and harvest was in full swing. We picked most of our Cabernet on the 26th after a couple of days in the mid 80s.

The season ended abruptly along with the month of October. In the last three days of the month, the high temperature dropped 35 degrees and never came back. Most of the mountain fruit was harvested in these last few days of Indian summer, long after the valley fruit had been put to bed. Our last lot was picked on the 30th, and on the 31st it rained hard and never broke 52 degrees. With great appreciation and wonder, we worked the last lots in the cellar marveling at the soft tannins and full, ripe fruit that we all pray for each year.
Thanks to Marv Atchley, Atchley Vineyard for the temperature data.
Tad and Pete Minor, Winemakers, Ritchie Creek Vineyard

2002
The 2002 vintage can be characterized by the extreme heat felt throughout the summer and into the fall. Starting with a moderate spring, we experienced an average bud break and bloom, but then there was some heavy late rain towards the end of May that affected the set of Merlot and some Cabernet. Less than two weeks later we had temperatures above 100 degrees! A pattern of moderate temperatures with heat spikes continued through August and into September with a total of six heat waves above 100 degrees. Starting in late August, the heat really intensified.

The vines were already advanced, but they were in desperate need of water to reach the desired physiological ripeness. The heat did not relent and in the first days of September the mercury pinned above the century mark again. These two spikes really hammered many vineyards requiring them to pick the whites and early reds as fast as possible. The vines that lasted through this period were blessed with a few weeks to soak up some water and let those skins ripen. The acids began to drop out at this point and the pHs began to climb. Many of the red grapes on the mountain began to flood into the wineries. Then the final blast of off shore flow dealt the vines about all the heat they could handle in late September.

By the middle of October much of the picking on Spring Mountain was complete. The key to success in 2002 was watering the vines at the right time to manage the heat. The vines needed time to ripen out the acid rather than dehydration, thus concentrating the acid. Also canopy management factored in heavily in preventing (or in some cases allowing) substantial sunburn. Lower yields and ample ripening weather led to many deeply concentrated, rich, ripe wines. The moderate to low acid in the vintage due to the heat led to wines that may be ready to consume earlier than in other vintages. Overall, the 2002 vintage was memorable for the heat and for having some free time by Halloween.
Sam Baxter, Winemaker, Terra Valentine

2001
The year started with a fairly early bud break, mid-March, and stayed on an early track for the rest of the season. We had nice dry weather during bloom, which resulted in a good fruit set and good crop levels, both on Spring Mountain and throughout the Napa Valley. A plot of the high temperatures shows an abrupt upward trend starting in late April culminating with one 100°F day during the first week of July. This was followed by another definite change during the remainder of July and August where the hottest days were in the low 90°s, but generally in the mid to upper 80°F range. Starting the first of September, there is another well defined trend of gradually decreasing temperatures.

The early warmth combined with a slightly reduced, but fairly constant level of warm temperatures starting in July resulted in an early harvest throughout our Appellation. At Paloma, we picked our first grapes on August 29th – the earliest we have started harvest since we began making wine in 1994 and finished on October 11th. The warmth of the growing season resulted in fairly high sugars as we waited for flavor development and although some of the wines had high alcohol levels, but the result was wonderfully rich wines with big frit forward wines. A great vintage on Spring Mountain and the Napa Valley in general.
Thanks to Marv Atchley, Atchley Vineyard for the temperature data.
Jim Richards, Winemaker, Paloma Vineyard

2000
The year 2000 was one of the more puzzling vintages that winegrowers have dealt with
in northern California wine country in recent years. The physiological signals from the vines were quite confusing and it became evident that the vines themselves were out of rhythm. Both prior years, '98 and '99, began with late budbreak and brought late harvests, concluding for most Spring Mountain growers in the month of November.

The 2000 growing season began with early bud break, which upset the internal rhythms of the vines, resulting in an uneven, tracking / ripening season. The weather also played a part with heat spikes that caused premature dehydration of fruit with afternoon sun exposure. Thinning became important to remove flaccid fruit with green seeds and patience became critical to permit seed maturation in the remaining grapes. Grapevines simply can't understand an 11-month year and in the final analysis, though bud break was early, the real fruit maturation associated with flavor development wound up being quite late. The last of the Cabernets were harvested in November once again.
Bob Foley, Winemaker, Pride Vineyards