2011 West Coast Weather and Vintage Thread

I thought I’d be the one to kick it off this year.

Share your thoughts on weather, vine and crop info, relations with wineries or anthing else related to the farming end of things.

We just passed 20" of rainfall at New Years and that makes me very happy.

We have had very cold weather, tons of rain, and snow in the Palisades yesterday morning. Cars were coming down from Howell Mountain with 3 inches of snow on their roofs. Bodes well for the growing season.

Although its been cold in some places, I saw manzanita blooming today!

Best. Year. Ever.

Yep, I can’t imagine a better start.

Lack of rainfall is not something anyone in the Willamette Valley worries about too much. This year it’s good and cold, too. 29 degrees in Yamhill right now.

Casey, thanks for getting the thread going for FY2011! Has the recent heavy rain caused any damage in the vineyard? Is it fair to say that most growers want another 15-20 in. of rain between now and the end of March to set up the growing season?

Here’s hoping for a great growing year!

No damage, just lots of cabin fever! Our normal is 35" between Nov and May. Hell, we’re already over half way there. I hear the Sierra snow pack is 200% of normal to date in some places. There’s thing like being ahead on the rainfall. Feels like your playing with the house money.

In California, rainfall without storage of some sort means nothing really (except headaches like erosion, hazardous traveling, etc.). If your interest is storage via snow pack, then the more rain the merrier I suppose (assuming it’s cold enough to snow!!).

If your interest is filling up a pond or reservoir, then something less than “average” over the course of a season probably does the trick.

If your focus is having the subsoil of your vineyard reach “field capacity” (the maximum amount of water that the subsoil can retain after the excess percolates through) then what you need is a function of the type and depth of your soil. For soils with moderate moisture holding capacity, an inch of rain will bring as much as 7" or 8" of subsoil to field capacity, assuming the entire one inch soaks in (i.e., no run off). I would be surprised if there is a place in Northern California where the soil isn’t at or very near field capacity already.

It goes without saying that if it’s the subsoil you’re interested in, 20" of rain from twenty one inch storms spaced three days apart is a heck of lot better than getting all 20" in two or three storms. In the latter instance, the bulk of the rain just runs off to the ocean, creating lots of havoc along the way, and you still might need more rain to get the soil profile full. In the former instance, you’ll already have a full soil profile at 20".

Just a long winded way of saying that any discussion of rain totals really needs a context. Regardless of context though, it’s good to see the rain early, especially if we get a break for a few weeks so we can get caught up on our dormant season chores!!!

Context, shmontext. I am Spartacus is all that needs to be said.

Santa Clara’s getting more than 5 yr average as of end of November.

http://valleywater.org/Services/GroundwaterMonitoring.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

November 2010 monitoring data indicate recovery trend with the November water levels
showing higher water levels compared to the October levels (see Figures 9 -19).
Groundwater levels are higher than last year (November 2009), probably due to the
decreased pumping this year (see Figures 3 and 4) and the wet cool weather (see
Figure 5).
In the Santa Clara Subbasin, November groundwater levels are generally higher than
November 1987, 2004 and past five-year (2005-2009) average for November levels.
Also, Santa Clara Subbasin groundwater levels are significantly higher than subsidence
thresholds (Figure 2 and Table 1).
In the Llagas Subbasin, November 2010 water levels are higher or about same as
November 1987 and 2004, and the past five-year average for November. In contrast to
the other two subbasins, the Coyote Subbasin groundwater elevation is lower or about
same as November 1987 and 2004, and the past five-year average for November
levels.

Looks like a good year here.

We’ve had over 50 inches of rain over the last three months up here. The creeks and Klamath river are raging and the snow pack is epic for this time of year. Just hope we don’t have a pineapple express come through, or the .

J. Riddle, thanks for your informative, detailed response on rain fall. Such information is very welcome on this thread. There has been discussion over the years regarding optimal rain fall during the off-season to replenish groundwater levels and wash out salt from vineyards close to the ocean, etc. Obviously, issues such as whether you dry farm or irrigate also come into play. Thanks again!

Yes, the important data is how late you are at field capacity and precipitation afterwards (or lack of it).
These are possibly the most influential events of your vintage and of your site.
If you dry farm (as you should)
E

My pleasure. Spartacus may not care (just kidding John), but you’re right, someone looking to flush salts from the subsoil or recharge a particular underground aquifer may want and need a lot more seasonal rainfall than someone who is just looking to dry farm on moderate to deep loamy soils. It’s not “one size fits all.”

All rain talk aside, it’s clear and crisp now, and likely to stay that way for a few weeks. With over 30" of the wet stuff at my place already, I ain’t complaining.

Wow, not a lot of action/interest in this year’s weather. But this weekend’s weather could not be more different from the weather we had in late December and early January. Foggy nights, but not too cold, and warm sunny days of 65-70 degrees. Many vineyards are being pruned with a first pass, and many others getting their final cuts. The ground is still very wet - you can still see standing water in some of the low spots of vineyards and fields. But this is a wonderful reprieve - my heating bill will hopefully get back to normal.

Calistoga is very busy with people out and about, and many were enjoying Solbar at the Solage Resort up the street on Friday night. Some folks - I can only assume they must be from New England or the Midwest - were sitting on the patio by the fire and under the heaters, enjoying their cocktails. We ordered a flight of Pinots consisting of 2007 Calera, 2008 Copain, and 2009 Rivers-Marie, and enjoyed it with the Maitake mushroom/carmelized onion/gruyere pizza. Delicious (and enjoyed inside).

Merrill, how has the weather been in Sonoma/Napa the past few weeks - staying warmer than normal? Given the heavy early rain - do vineyards need much more rain between now and April to get ready for the growing season? Good luck!

The weather has been unseasonably warm pretty much every day for I think at least 2 weeks. We are talking 65-78 degrees, regularly. Nights still get cold - 35 degrees with frost Sunday night. The soil is still holding quite a bit of moisture, even though it has not rained in at least a couple of weeks. The major effect of the lack of rain - if this were to continue - would be overall depletion of moisture in the soil at an earlier time in the growing cycle, which will hasten the “need” or desirability of irrigating the vines. The earlier you start irrigating, the earlier the ponds and wells will run dry. But I think we will see more rain - not sure what is in the forecast.

The other thing the rain is good for is keeping away the frosty nights after budbreak. The air tends to be warmer when it precipitates - it’s those cold, dry nights that set off those frost alarms.

Beginning to wonder if we are going to see some things peeking out of their slumber a little earlier than normal this year. More weather like this, and it won’t be all that long.

Our reservoir has been full for weeks now. Atlas Peak is still only at about 2/3 of normal precipitation, however. Wouldn’t mind a dry Spring and early start to the season this year, honestly, after a lot of waiting around at the end of the last 2. I think we’re due for either a hot vintage or at least a “normal” one!!

Last I heard from a Bay Area weatherman was if it stays dry through next week that’ll put us at 100% of normal for the date. Meaning after that someone will start using the “D” word (drought).

Anyway, the last time this happened a bunch of years ago it started raining again in mid-Feb and didn’t let up until April. Ma Nature will figure it out.