Vintage 2026: Mid-April Frost and Freeze Conditions

Last week, we were having absolutely wonderful warm weather and then our friend, a vineyard manager at another winery alerted us to a possible frost and freeze occuring in our area on Monday morning, April 20 and Tuesday morning, April 21. We did have some of our varieties in the wooly bud stage so we were concerned. When we got there on Monday, everything seemed okay and then on Tuesday, I took photos of our buds.

Variety
Auxerrois
Chenin Blanc
Chardonnay
Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Franc
Barbera

I think they are fine. It's not at all like the freeze we had on May 18, 2023. However, I did see in my wine news feed that areas to the south of us experienced what we had in May 2023. It's a devastating feeling.