September 9th – red grape sugar sampling results:
Merlot – 25.0 B – brown shoots & seeds, nice juice fruitiness, will be harvesting this week!
Zinfandel – 23.5 B – classic large berried bunches still need a bit of time for that classic Zin character development.
August 20, 2013 – Tzabaco Rancho white grape sugar sampling results:
Chardonnay – 23.2 B
Sauvignon blanc – 23.0 B
Viognier – 20.0 B
Nice increase in sugar content over a very hot week last week that could have seen abnormal heat driven sugar increases but didn’t. The weather should be closer to normal average temps this week…so sugar accumulation may slow a bit…not a problem as we have lots of good weather ahead!
Flavors are great…Chardonnay is again smelling like fresh, crisp new apples while the Sauvignon blanc is showing classic Sauv blanc characters. The Viognier is progressing well….the spicy floral notes will start to shine closer to 24 Brix.
Today’s white grape sugar sampling results:
Chardonnay – 21.5 B
Sauvignon blanc – 19.5 B
Viognier – 18.0 B
The weather is warming up this week…so we may see better sugar accumulation as we return to more normal temperatures after the very cool temperatures over the last two weeks.
The picture of the white grape cluster is from our Chardonnay block!