August in the Vineyard

August is an exciting time in the vineyard: berries have reached full size by mid-month, and will then undergo “verasion,” when the yellow-green color develops in white grapes or the darker purple color develops in red grapes. Once verasion is 90 percent complete, we do a “green drop,” where we remove under-ripe clusters, allowing the vine to put more resources into fewer grapes, thus producing more concentrated flavors. With careful irrigation and management of the canopy from June through August, we facilitate the growth of very high quality fruit that requires only a touch of magic in the cellar to produce the most enchanting wines.

Cheers,
George Troquato, Winemaker