Heavy rain in parts of the Cher today and some yesterday has brought picking to a halt.
2008 vintage@Clos Roche BlancheAlthough many vignerons in the Cher are just starting to pick, the new streamlined Clos Roche Blanche is now well on the way to finishing.
Catherine: "We haven't picked today because of the rain – so no more T-shirts, sandals and thongs! But we have finished our Sauvignon, Gamay and the Pineau d'Aunis, so there is just the Côt and the Cabernet that remain.
"The Sauvignon is looking very good – no rot. Most of it is between 13%-13.5% potential alcohol with around 5g acidity. The last parcel was up around 14%. I would have preferred 12.5%-13% but still! Unfortunately, overall, there is only 22-23hl/ha but it has been dry in August and the recent wind has further reduced the crop.
The yield for the Gamay is around 24hl/ha – 13.5% alc and 5.5g acidity. Fortunately we picked this before the rain as Gamay is terrible for sucking up water. We have very little Pineau d'Aunis this year – just 9 hl/ha, so we have only made rosé. At 12.6% and 4.8g it should be well balanced.
"I'm disappointed by the low yields but the fruit looked great, so I can't complain! We will probably wait until Monday to pick the Côt and Cabernet, which is now ripe. It all depends on the weather but we are not in a rush."
Catherine thinks that one of the reasons for many producers picking later than them is that their yields are higher, so the fruit ripens more slowly. "I've heard reports of grapes now at 10.5%-11%. Also those vineyards hit by hail will be later, as the vines are stressed by hail damage and the grapes take longer to ripen."
Catherine: "We haven't picked today because of the rain – so no more T-shirts, sandals and thongs! But we have finished our Sauvignon, Gamay and the Pineau d'Aunis, so there is just the Côt and the Cabernet that remain.
"The Sauvignon is looking very good – no rot. Most of it is between 13%-13.5% potential alcohol with around 5g acidity. The last parcel was up around 14%. I would have preferred 12.5%-13% but still! Unfortunately, overall, there is only 22-23hl/ha but it has been dry in August and the recent wind has further reduced the crop.
The yield for the Gamay is around 24hl/ha – 13.5% alc and 5.5g acidity. Fortunately we picked this before the rain as Gamay is terrible for sucking up water. We have very little Pineau d'Aunis this year – just 9 hl/ha, so we have only made rosé. At 12.6% and 4.8g it should be well balanced.
"I'm disappointed by the low yields but the fruit looked great, so I can't complain! We will probably wait until Monday to pick the Côt and Cabernet, which is now ripe. It all depends on the weather but we are not in a rush."
Catherine thinks that one of the reasons for many producers picking later than them is that their yields are higher, so the fruit ripens more slowly. "I've heard reports of grapes now at 10.5%-11%. Also those vineyards hit by hail will be later, as the vines are stressed by hail damage and the grapes take longer to ripen."
•
Aynard and Isabelle Clemont-Tonnerre
Aynard and Isabelle Clemont-TonnerreIsabelle Clermont-Tonnerre (Clos du Porteau, Saint-Georges-sur-Cher)
Isabelle was very enthusiastic when I spoke to her this evening despite it pouring with rain today.
"We started last Friday picking Sauvignon Blanc in a vineyard that overlooks the Cher on the 1er Côte. It's at 12.5% (see the analysis in Aynard's comment below) and the quality is superb with the flavours that we saw last year but with more weght. We expected to restart picking on Monday. Then it will be three weeks non-stop!
"We started last Friday picking Sauvignon Blanc in a vineyard that overlooks the Cher on the 1er Côte. It's at 12.5% (see the analysis in Aynard's comment below) and the quality is superb with the flavours that we saw last year but with more weght. We expected to restart picking on Monday. Then it will be three weeks non-stop!
"The Sauvignon that we picked on Friday flowered on 11th June – the same day as a lys blanche in Saint-Georges – and we started picking 90 days later!"
