I host the private wine tasting events at Daveste Vineyards so I’m always walking people through the vineyard and hopefully, sharing with them what I feel every time I drive into the vineyard. The first thing I see is the vines and I crane my neck from the car to catch a glimpse of any changes that happened over the past week. It is hard to describe how much I enjoy seeing the changes in the vineyard.
In the winter months, the vines look dead. From the outside, they look like brown sticks jutting out from the ground, but below the surface, they are still teaming with life. You can’t see the process going on with the roots, but I know grape vines do amazing things. The root system, in these quiet months, exists deep down into the ground to build a strong foundation for future growth. The vines dehydrate and rest over the winter months, but inside the plant, fully formed compressed buds are waiting for next year’s growth. They know that in order to be strong in the growing season, they will need time to rest. The vineyard manager leaves extra canes on the vines in case of a late frost. The canes, which are kind of like the arms of the vines, are where the buds will burst from in the spring. The extra canes are like a reserve system, so the vines can keep growing season after season, even if one cane is damaged by frost, the extra canes are there and ready for growth.
In April, the compressed shoot, inside the bud, senses the right conditions. If there is enough warmth over a long enough period of time, it signals the vines and they begin to wake up. I am like a child on Christmas peeking every week to see if there are any changes in the vines. I am waiting for the magic of bud burst and my heart soars when I see the first signs of new growth. This year, it snuck up on me. I missed a week at the vineyard when I traveled to see my son in the Dominican Republic and when I came back, I could see the tiny leaves emerging on the vines. This is the beauty of working at a vineyard and feeling close to the vines. When you eventually taste the wine, you are deeply connected to the vines and the process of becoming. You know, intimately, the beauty of the vine, beyond what can be easily seen.
This week, when I toured the vineyard, I could see the tiny grapes present on the vine. Summer months mean rapid growth. Every week, I see big changes. First, the leaves and then the flowers come. If the flowers pollinate, they will set and become grapes. Every flower does not get pollinated and that is ok. The vine does not need every flower to become a grape. It trusts the process and understands that the grapes that do form, will be just right. If all the flowers became grapes, the vine would be overwhelmed. The best wine comes when the vines concentrate their energy.
In September, we harvest the grapes. This is a time of careful decisions. The winemaker must have patience and go out into the vineyard day after day, to test the grapes and find the perfect balance of acidity and sweetness. They know that this decision and all the decisions that follow will determine the impact of the wine they co-create. A great wine has balance and when you taste a great wine, you feel this balance. It is hard to describe how it feels. I overcome with emotion. There is so much going on all at once and you feel all of the elements, not separately but connected. You experience a great wine in waves. You don’t see everything with the first taste. You need to sip slowly and think and feel. I get lost in a great wine and go to a place where logic doesn’t exist. It is sensual and pure, like reading a great poem, listening to perfectly blended music or watching an actor illicit an experience in you that you didn’t even know you felt.
Getting to be part of the process of growth is what makes me appreciate the wines that exist in the world. They are each unique and have a story to tell. The winemaker and the vineyard manager can tell the story of the growth season…the weather conditions that year, the soil, what happened in the lives of the vines, the community..the people connected to the vines and you taste all of this in the wine. You can taste the mistakes and know that there will be another year to try again. Grape vines are built to withstand and offer opportunity to keep trying. You taste the triumphs and celebrate all of the magic that contributed to the production of a great vintage.