You know, even when it's soggy, it's beautiful. The hills and knolls are the brilliant spring green that can only come with abundant rainfall. The craggy vines are showing the first signs of life, revealing small, tender shoots, albeit a bit late.

After a false spring in mid-February that brought to mind thoughts of early bud-break¹, it began raining. And raining. And raining. As we sloshed through a record-setting, soggy March, and the drenching continued in April, we expected the rains to at least become warm ones, but no. These were cold, winter-style storms.

Actually, this can be good news for those of us with well-drained vineyard sites, which is most of us. The cold rains can reduce our risk of frost damage by keeping the vines dormant longer (as long as the vines are dormant it takes extreme temperatures to damage them). Just like us, the new shoots don't like to come out when it's cold and wet! Plus, the cloud cover keeps the valley floor insulated so there's less chance of frost occurring.

Wet weather hazards:

• For those whose vines are actively growing and still sitting in water, the water around the roots can deprive them of oxygen, leading to stunted growth. Yellow leaves are the indicator.
• Potential root rot for poorly drained vineyards as the temperatures warm up. Wet feet + 70° soil temperatures = trouble.
• Greater pest and mildew pressure due to the excess moisture.
• It's hard to get any work done in the vineyard if your tractor is stuck in the mud!

The greatest risk this year is that the growing season, which usually begins around the middle of March, is about 2-4 weeks behind schedule valley-wide. Our Winemaker, Geoff Gorsuch, estimates that our Cabernet family vineyard here at the winery is about three weeks behind normal. The late start could lead to a late harvest and the risk of running into rain.

We prefer to be optimistic.

By around the middle of April the rains began to lighten up, and we've actually seen a few days of sun! The vines are easily encouraged and can make up for lost time quickly if we have some nice, warm days, which is the norm for us this time of year. Growers feel cautiously optimistic, too, because the 2005 crop was extremely generous. Following a big vintage, the vines are likely to pull back, and a light crop ripens faster than a heavy one.

All of which means we don't know what kind of growing season we'll have, other than to say we're off to a late start. We'll get back to you in a few months to let you know how flowering and fruit-set (usually in May) turn out. Let's hope Mother Nature smiles on us. Cheers!

Footnote:
¹Bud-break: This is the name used for the beginning of the growing season, when the vines emerge from dormancy. Buds swell and push out new shoots and leaves as the soil and daytime temperatures warm up in the late winter or early spring.