The weather has cooled down a little more than we’d like this month, but we’re keeping our fingers crossed that the sun will show up and warm up the vines for the remainder of the summer. A good share of the vineyard is over half-way ripe, which means it’s time to protect the grapes from pests. At this point, our 2 major concerns are deer and birds. The 8 ft. fence around the vineyard keeps out the deer. To keep the birds at bay, we lay nets over the vines. We pull a contraption behind a tractor which helps drape the net over the vine rows. The process requires 4 people minimum: 1 on the tractor, 1 feeding net through the contraption, and 2 walking alongside each row, tugging the net down below the canopy. Minus a few bee stings and snags in the net, we conquered 6 acres of vines in about 8 hours. It’s not a fun or fast job, but it’s essential!
Bird-netted Chardonnay
Watch for harvest updates, grape photos, and crush posts to soon follow!!
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