Live from the Vineyard Part 2

Q: So far, what is the ‘personality’ of this harvest?
There are two, really. For the white grapes, which come in earlier than the reds, the weath¬er was fairly mild, and we’re seeing some solid aromatics evolve as they ferment. Then, hot weather rolled in and with it came the reds. They’re showing some pretty decadent Brix values that will lead to big fruit-forward type wines. A lot is getting ripe at the same time, so Bob Swain is doing a heck of a job moving all the chess pieces to get the fruit in and have enough open tanks for what is yet to come. It’s a very concen¬trated vintage: both in terms of flavor and in-take.

Q: Has anything surprised you this year?
It’s been six harvests for Mendocino Wine Company already? We are just getting started and yet so much has changed in that short period of time. We have our very own weigh scale! This is more exciting than most people can probably fathom. Also we are doing more native fermentations (no ad¬dition of yeast), particularly off the Home Ranch, which was recently certified Biody¬namic. We seem to be developing more of a sense of trust with natural expressions of this beautiful ranch.

Q: What never changes year-to-year?
The weather will do something you never expected it to do. The never-ending posi¬tive energy and amazing work ethic at every level of winery operations: from the press to the cellar to the barrel room. It’s busy, seemingly chaotic and stressful, but we’re all bound together by the confidence we have the best people working the jobs necessary to make the best wine we can.

Q: Any wines to watch?
The 2007 red wines that are coming out soon are plain off the hook - fruity with round tannins. There will be some great surprises with this vintage.