The Calm After the Storm

Following the record-breaking 2018 harvest, we have had time to re-charge our batteries and reflect on an excellent year, and now we can channel our energies into the production and distribution of our wines. As they work their way through the winery, we are also able to check in on the vineyard and prepare for next Summer. With the lower temperatures, the vines have moved all the carbohydrates they've captured through their leaves to the roots, storing them there ready for Spring. Over Winter, the vines will remain dormant until soil temperatures increase around April time, then the buds on the vines will begin to show signs of new growth.

Before this happens though, there are a few crucial jobs that need to be done. Most important of all is pruning, which determines how the vines will grow over the next year. Following a warm, dry summer with lots of fruit, we need to ensure we do not put the vines under too much pressure and stress. This means finding the right balance when pruning - not leaving too many buds on the vine. However, leaving too few buds can lead to the vine putting more energy into each bud, giving us a lot more work to do next year managing the canopy and controlling growth. This is why pruning is such an important job in the vineyard.

Due to our northerly climate, we choose to prune later than most other vineyards in the UK, some of whom will have started pruning back in November. Most of these vineyards will have hundreds of acres, and so need to start as soon as possible just in order to finish in time for Spring. Our size means we can wait until late March before pruning, which can help delay bud-burst, therefore offering some protection from any late frosts. Frosts in late-April and May can be devastating as they can kill off new growth on vines and can reduce the harvest yield, potentially to nothing at all.

As well as pruning, we will continue with controlling the weeds around the vines, weather permitting. The Italian Alders we planted to screen the western border of the vineyard from the wind will be trimmed to encourage them to grow taller, creating a larger windbreak. Winter is also the perfect time to carry out annual maintenance on our tractor and vineyard machinery - the imminent completion of our building will finally give us a place under-cover to do this. Crucial for the storage and security of all our equipment, the building will also give us on-site facilities for staff and volunteers.

Winter is the time to be tasting the wines from the past vintage as they get ever closer to being ready - definitely the best job to see us through the cold months ahead!