Recent studies at Stellenbosch University have suggested that variations in the aromatic properties of wine, from identical grapes harvested in the same vineyard, may be due to differences in the yeast composition within the vineyard. This is because the microbial species present on the berry may contribute to the fermentation process.
Whilst the same yeast-like fungus, Aureobasidium pullunans,...
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It is often said that you learn most from difficult years - if this is the case then I'm now the fountain of all viticulture knowledge! 2012 wasn't a complete disaster for us but we will hope and pray that we don't get another year as bad for a long time.
The season started with a warm period which resulted in early bud break and we were woken by frost alarms no fewer than eight times in March and...
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The vineyard in November
November is probably the only quite month in the year for a vineyard and it should be the time for a vineyard manager to take a well earned rest. For Alex this means she will have time to take her 500cc motorcycle test!
Having completed the harvest, the vines are winding down and there isn't a lot to do before we start pruning in December. Last week we sprayed the vines with...
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Horn Manure in the making
Now that we are biodynamic we have started to make our own biodynamic preparations. One of the most basic is Horn Manure (preparation 500) which is made by burying cow horns stuffed with dung from lactating organic cows.
Biodynamics is probably the most advanced form or organic viticulture. "Bio" means life and "Dynamics" means energy. It is an holistic approach which...
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2012 will be remembered as a very difficult year for vineyards in England. Quite simply the weather has been dreadful - the worst that anyone can remember since 1997.
Having successfully protected the vines against the April frosts, the problems started with poor fruit set in the summer. Grapes pollinate themselves and need a period of dry warm weather in late June/early July. Unfortunately it was...
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Yesterday we hand picked around 700kg of Pinot Noir for the 2012 Silent Pool Rosé, which produced around 450 litres of excellent must. It's been a very difficult year so we decided to selectively pick only the very best fruit to ensure that we maintain our quality standards. Next week we will pick the ripest Pinot Meunier which will also be used for the still rosé. The production this year will be...
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This time last year we had picked all the grapes on the vineyard and Silent Pool Rose 2011 was in the making. This year the weather has been so dreadful that we have had to delay the harvest for 2-3 weeks to take advantage of a few last rays of sunshine, which will hopefully increase the sugars and reduce acid levels. Whilst good sparkling wine requires fairly acidic juice, still wine needs to be...
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| The Vineyard in the heart of the Surrey Hills |
It's been a very difficult year for viticulture in the UK. The weather was cold and wet in May and June, which led to poor fruit set in July. Since then the wet, but warmer, weather in July and August has resulted in Downey Mildew arriving on the vineyard, particularly in Block C, which is planted with Chardonnay.
Overall I estimate that we will pick...
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| Dr Wend Parr |
I attended a fascinating masterclass recently on wine sensory evaluation given by Dr Wendy Parr from Lincoln University in New Zealand.
When you taste a wine there are three things to consider: the person doing the tasting (physiology and psychology), what is in the wine glass (chemical composition) and the interaction between the two. "The tast of the bottle is not just in the bottle...
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We are delighted with our new website
www.alburyvineyard.com which has just gone live. Developed by Dave Nyss of
d2, it provides more information about the vineyard and an improved user interface. It will also allow customers to purchase the wine
on-line when we release this years vintage next May.
The new site has information on stockists, including local wine merchants and restaurants who have...
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We were up early this morning preparing biodynamic preparation 501 which is a Horn Silica spray. It is most effective if sprayed at sunrise, when the dew is still on the ground, so we met at 5.30am to prepare the mixture and Alex was on the vineyard spraying soon after 6.30am!
Horn Silica is used during the growing season to enhance growth and maturation. It is sprayed on the vine canopy to enhance...
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| Downy Mildew "oilspots" |
Unfortunately we have found evidence of Downy Mildew on the vineyard in Blocks A and C. Initial symptoms are usually seen on the leaves, which show yellow "oilspots" on the leaf surface. It is caused by the fungus
Plasmopara viticola and is potentially a devastating disease as it can spread very rapidly through the vineyard causing the foliage to die as well as infecting the...
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