Grape testing

I tested a bunch of grapes that had turned deep red and got a Brix reading of 14. Since the optimal sugar content for red wine is Brix 22, we have a little time left before we harvest. I will take readings every other day for the next week and daily after that. 

The white grapes seem far behind the red Rondo. The photo coming up is of Chardonnay. Brix should reach 20 if it's to be wine. Not sure what will happen. 

The next two are Solaris. They are on the younger vines. The older vines didn't do much. Weird. But it's possible veraison has begun there. I will test them next time, but there won't be much of a harvest. 

The two coming up are Pinot Noir. Some of the vines seems to be infected with something - looks like powdery mildew to me. Others look fine. There are no Albarino grapes coming. 

The roses in the garden are all looking good, so we don't have a major fungal intrusion. 

This page is really good at helping to identify problems. 

The apple harvest is underway and the donkeys are loving the periodic small apple donations. It's a good year for apples. But we've lost our pear trees to disease. It's also our first harvest of hazelnuts. I am so excited. They were on  the younger of the two trees. Go figure. 

We have loads of Rondo grapes on the 5 vines we planted early on. Better start learning how to make wine. 

When to harvest?

The busiest and most crucial period in our vineyard has begun. I have seen grapes changing colour and so veraison is underway. But how do we know when is the optimal time to pick? And what should we be doing now to prepare for harvest?  

Most winegrowers in addition to the obvious signs, their “instinct”, and the interest of wild animals especially birds, also take into account measurements of sugar, tartaric acid (TA) as well as the pH of the grapes. Since these measurements differ for different varieties and the micro-climate of each vineyard, each winegrape grower should know her ripe grapes' optimal values. According to some literature, the optimal levels for red wines are Brix: 22, TA: 0.75, pH: 3,4; and for the white grapes Brix: 20, TA: 0.7 and pH: 3.2. This I will have to develop as I monitor annual harvests. Eventually, I'll need to buy a pH and TA tester. 

I have not tested before and, as a result, we lost our first tiny harvest to birds, our second harvest was spot on and our third harvest was too early. So I finally bought a refractometer, one of the most common tools for winegrowers to measure the amount of sugar in the grapes. I have used it to measure the sugar content at the various stages of wine maturation and it's pretty easy. What I need to do is start measuring now so that I have an indicator of increasing sugar content. Here's a good article to refresh knowledge about how to read a refractometer and more. 

Aside from monitoring grape ripeness, I will also be monitoring the weather and the appearance of diseases and pests. Botrytis becomes especially problematic after the grapes attain 8% sugar content. As we are an organic and natural vineyard without use of pesticides or other chemicals, I will have to remove anything that is affected immediately. That requires daily vigilance in the vineyard from now until harvest. 

I'll have to prepare all the tools and equipment as well and clear space for working. We really need a shed for the winemaking, as we've outgrown the house. 

Meanwhile, Spain has reported its earliest harvest ever. 

Almost there

 

Veraison is progressing very quickly now. We may be harvesting in the next few days. The kite is flying nicely and seems to be doing its job. Let's hope that between the cats, the donkeys and the kite, the birds will be kept away. 

Veraison underway!

Lo and behold, veraison, the changing of berry colour, is underway. The Ronda grapes are looking fine. Bigger than last year already and already turning a lovely red.

The Solaris are once again disappointing. Some have formed grapes, others withered into tiny black balls. Alex thinks they were not pollinated and wants to move a hive into the vineyard. But as grapes are self-pollinating, will that help. 

Anyway, it's looking promising, or more like hopeful. Just this drasted drought getting in the way. 

August is gone

August ended with less rainfall than in the previous 3 years, but equal to the mean of 1981-2010. (Why they chose two earlier decades, I do not know.) August also saw the onset of veraison, or the beginning of the grapes turning colour. 

Meanwhile, September started with torrential downpours and flooding in Clifden, which is a short distance away in Connemara. We didn't have quite as much, but we still had a lot overnight and all day. Met Eireann had forecast 25-35mm rain for our area. And more to come. The air and soil temperature were almost a full degree higher than prior years. It certainly feels like climate change. 

Did I mention that we now have native honey bees?  Grapes don't need them as they self-pollinate, but the orchard should benefit enormously. Plus, I won't have to walk around with a paintbrush doing the pollinating myself. The suit can double as protection against coronavirus transmission. Just suit up and everyone will steer clear on the streets. 

MONTHLY VALUES FOR NEWPORT UP TO 01-SEP-2020

Total rainfall in millimetres for NEWPORT

Year	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Annual
2020	139.5	342.8	178.2	25.5	54.7	164.5	187.9	137.9	3.5				1234.5
2019	146.8	115.0	228.5	100.7	112.5	76.6	82.7	228.9	175.5	160.7	148.1	220.6	1796.6
2018	274.6	155.6	86.2	94.3	70.4	65.9	58.6	179.1	148.3	140.9	172.6	201.0	1647.5
2017	94.3	151.0	216.2	31.1	64.2	108.3	164.0	197.6	153.3	190.1	203.0	179.7	1752.8
mean	166.7	126.5	141.2	96.8	94.7	89.7	100.9	132.5	131.5	176.0	170.4	180.2	1607.1

Mean temperature in degrees Celsius for NEWPORT

Year	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Annual
2020	7.2	6.0	6.6	11.0	12.8	13.8	14.4	16.0	16.6				11.0
2019	6.9	8.4	7.9	10.2	11.7	13.1	16.3	15.5	13.7	10.3	7.1	7.1	10.7
2018	5.9	4.6	5.5	9.1	13.1	16.1	16.1	15.0	12.4	10.9	8.3	8.1	10.5
2017	7.1	6.7	8.7	10.0	13.5	14.0	14.8	14.6	13.0	11.7	8.1	6.6	10.8
mean	6.1	6.1	7.3	9.0	11.5	13.8	15.4	15.4	13.5	10.8	8.3	6.5	10.3

Mean 10cm soil temperature for NEWPORT at 0900 UTC

Year	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Annual
2020	5.7	4.7	5.4	9.7	13.0	14.8	14.9	16.3	n/a				10.6
2019	6.1	6.1	6.8	8.9	12.2	13.8	16.7	15.7	13.5	9.4	6.2	5.6	10.1
2018	4.4	2.9	4.0	8.2	13.1	17.4	18.4	15.1	12.1	9.6	6.6	6.6	9.9
2017	5.5	5.6	6.9	9.6	13.7	14.9	15.8	15.2	12.7	11.1	7.3	5.3	10.3
mean	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a

Global Solar Radiation in Joules/cm2 for NEWPORT

Year	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Annual
2020	6263	10808	24545	46192	58476	43537	40215	40555	1429				272020
2019	5378	10595	21306	37648	49884	49607	45395	37116	26460	17406	8167	4766	313728
2018	5976	13390	25269	34709	58446	59849	51448	34923	22619	17123	7842	4068	335662
2017	6968	9849	26218	30764	61302	41046	44472	37677	26833	13741	7192	4601	310663
mean	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a

Potential Evapotranspiration (mm) for NEWPORT

Year	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Annual
2020	17.6	21.9	35.0	70.2	91.6	72.9	66.2	66.4	2.2				444.0
2019	13.4	21.5	35.4	60.4	79.0	78.2	79.5	62.9	42.8	29.2	14.8	14.3	531.4
2018	16.3	21.8	35.7	52.0	88.2	102.4	87.2	58.7	37.9	30.2	18.0	11.5	559.9
2017	15.6	18.1	39.5	52.4	95.8	68.2	72.1	60.6	43.7	26.1	16.5	12.6	521.2
mean	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a

Evaporation (mm) for NEWPORT

Year	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Annual
2020	22.4	31.9	51.8	98.9	130.8	104.8	94.3	92.7	3.2				630.8
2019	17.7	29.5	52.0	87.3	111.6	112.8	109.6	88.8	59.9	39.6	18.9	17.9	745.6
2018	21.9	30.2	51.7	76.4	127.4	140.4	120.7	82.2	53.1	40.6	22.8	14.9	782.3
2017	20.7	25.9	56.2	73.6	136.2	99.6	102.4	85.7	62.2	35.9	21.0	16.1	735.5
mean	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a

DEGREE DAYS BELOW 15.5 DEGREE CELSIUS FOR NEWPORT

Year	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Total
2020	257	276	275	143	111	73	55	31	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
2019	266	200	235	165	130	89	27	36	67	164	251	262	1892
2018	298	306	309	194	104	50	31	44	100	147	215	230	2027
2017	260	247	212	166	89	60	49	49	86	118	222	277	1834

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Notes on the Data

Evaporation and PE data are calculated using Penman/Monteith formulae.
All means are for the period 1981-2010. Data updated daily at Mid-day.

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