Today is a gray, dreary, Connecticut spring day. We decided to take a road trip to a Vineyard/Winery in Massachusetts where we know the viticulturist is using tall grafts for his vineyard. (He wanted to remain anonymous and I am honoring his wishes). This is his experiment to see if tall grafts are a protection against crown gall that can afflict vines in this cool climate viticultural area. The way that crown gall infects our area vines is that we must hill the graft union to protect it during the winter. During the spring, we unhill the soil around the graft union and this activity can frequently cause damage to the vines. The damaged vines are susceptible to infection by Agrobacterium vitis. A tall or high graft will avoid the hilling and unhilling.
Since it is raining, I unfortunately cannot get a picture of the vines with tall grafts. He has Chardonnay growing on tall grafts. It’s such a raw day that we hastily beat a retreat to the tasting room. Three years ago when we visited the winery, we were very impressed that he could make red wines in this area. We especially remembered the Petit Verdot. This time, we drank Chardonnay, Vidal blanc, a white Merlot, Cabernet franc and Cabernet franc/Merlot blend. Although all the wines were made with the varietal typicity, and were yummy, honest wines, what blew us away was a barrel tasting of 2010 Chardonnay. The nose was a perfume of fruits and the flavor was astoundingly delicious with fruits and acids in a wonderful balance. This Chardonnay was waiting to undergo malolactic fermentation, but it was good as it was.
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