Jordan Estate Tales - Volume 7, 2012 - 22

R

eplanting a vineyard is one of the
most bittersweet tasks for a farmer.

Excitement builds with a vision for starting fresh with new
grapevine material we believe will make a greater wine.
But sadness lingers as we accept the reality that these
plants must be removed from their happy hillside homes.
That’s why a practice called grafting is a win-win for us—
and for the grapes.
grafting is a viticulture technique that allows farmers
to change the grape variety growing in a vineyard
without removing the existing grapevine trunk. Cabernet
Sauvignon vines can become Malbec vines in a matter of
weeks—and bear mature fruit within two years, compared
to a replanting, which takes three to five years before
the grapes are ready for winemaking. grafting is also
much gentler on the vineyard ecosystem than replanting
because the existing plants’ root systems, soil and microbes
are not disturbed.
The process involves cutting the plant in half horizontally,
about two feet above the ground, on the “trunk” of the
grapevine. Then a tiny bud of the new variety is inserted
into the live tissue of the vine. Within a few months, what
was once a Merlot plant will sprout Petit Verdot vine shoots
and tendrils.
using the results of our soil-mapping study of the estate
vineyards (see Estate Tales, Vol. 5 & 6), we redesigned our
vineyard map, dividing it into distinctively different blocks
by soil type. In some cases, vineyards were subdivided by
row and even vines within a row. Farming practices—from
pruning and applying compost to leaf pulling, irrigating and
harvest timing—were precisely adapted to each soil type
over the last two years. Some vineyard blocks thrived with
these precision farming techniques while a few struggled
to achieve fully ripened Cabernet Sauvignon grapes with
the blackberry-cassis flavor profile Winemaker Rob Davis
desires.
Because soil can’t be changed, we decided to try another
experiment to further elevate the quality of these vineyards.
Viticulturist Brent young identified three vineyard blocks
with relatively balanced calcium-to-magnesium ratios and
more consistent soil profiles, which should be more suitable
to Malbec and Petit Verdot grapes. A little more than 3
acres of Cabernet Sauvignon and 3 acres of Merlot were
grafted over.
We’ve been extremely happy with the “take” of our grafting:
how our existing plants accepted the new varieties. The
vines show outstanding growth and tremendous potential
for high-quality grapes.
The first vines we grafted will be harvested in 2012 in small
yields of one to two tons per acre. We think they’ll be great,
but we’ll let you be the judge when you try those wines—in
four to five years.

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Jordan Estate Tales - Volume 7, 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Jordan Estate Tales - Volume 7, 2012
