Aroma Therapy in the Vineyard

On Monday, we were in the vineyard working on shoot tucking and positioning the Auxerrois. It was a perfect day with very little humidity and the occasional breeze brought the aroma of the blooming honeysuckle. Granted, it is an invasive species but it was so pleasant to smell the honeysuckle while we were working. Shoot tucking and the smell of honeysuckle is an indelible association of work in the vineyard in early summer.

That was the last row of Auxerrois that we had to work on so while we were doing that, the Chenin Blanc was going out of control with shoots around the graft union. On Tuesday, we knew that we were in for the first day of the multi-day heat wave so we went to the vineyard on the early side for us. In the Chenin Blanc, we are clearing the shoots around the graft union and positioning the growing shoots.

Today was more of the same work in the Chenin Blanc. We've learned to work on only half of the vineyard so that the task doesn't appear to be endless. We do multiple half rows.
We went to check on our other varieties and found that the Chardonnay are now in fruitset and the Barbera as well as the Cabernet Franc are in the early stages of flowering. Here is a photo of the Chardonnay and the Barbera. The inflorescence of the Barbera appears very different from the other varieties we grow, having a very long peduncle!

The Auxerrois is not as advanced as the Chardonnay but it is in full bloom. The Chenin Blanc is just beginning to bloom and the Cabernet Sauvignon is just sitting there looking pretty!
Tomorrow is another day of aroma therapy in the vineyard!