Generally speaking, the vineyards are healthy at the moment. There are a few small patches of downy mildew, but nothing to be too concerned about. Growth has been even, and the vines are well-balanced (i.e. leaf vs crop).

Grapes are now going into pea size (the picture alongside is of cabernet franc grapes), and harvest should start towards the end of January, ending around the first week of March. Crop size should be similar to 2004.

We’ve expanded our scarecrow project (see alongside for our patented design) to keep bird and buck intruders to a minimum. In previous vintages they have targeted our best vineyard blocks. As much as we appreciate seeing natural selection at work (they never seem to be that interested in the second-rate fruit!), we’d prefer to be making wine from the grapes.

We’ve left the cover crop standing in the rows between vines. The advantage of this is that moisture is retained in the soil, and ground temperature is reduced. It also provides limited protection from wind damage.