tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post5737686790249120691..comments2024-03-18T04:47:16.199-07:00Comments on The Gray Report: Vintage charts for California are worthlessW. Blake Grayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17755307711801965966noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-84858774699869052382010-11-22T10:00:22.640-08:002010-11-22T10:00:22.640-08:00The guy that first brought up the term solar radia...The guy that first brought up the term solar radiation (wine-ev), I think, must be associated with a really cool Web site, www.wine-ev.com. I've used it a lot to get information about Heat Summation Indices. That's the measure used to determine the climate zones I, II, III, etc.<br /><br />Among many other tings, this site displays data from vitually every weather station in the world!<brKent Bensonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-70322422741768920772010-11-20T16:59:41.201-08:002010-11-20T16:59:41.201-08:00Peter: Thank you for this. I'm going to see ho...Peter: Thank you for this. I'm going to see how much of it I can track down. Losing ignorance is a long slow process.<br /><br />But this is all a bit of comment drift. The post is about vintage charts, and even before reading the scientific data, I need to make this point:<br /><br />Riper grapes do NOT necessarily lead to better wines. In fact, it can be the opposite, as in 2003 in most of W. Blake Grayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17755307711801965966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-59520778651641959242010-11-20T11:25:59.172-08:002010-11-20T11:25:59.172-08:00Mr. Gray,
There is a vast amount of academic liter...Mr. Gray,<br />There is a vast amount of academic literature on the subject. I suggest you take a look at the American Journal of Enology and Viticulture (website) and at Google Scholar. <br />In any case, I list below a few books and academic papers; including some of Dr. Richard E. Smart’s work which I highly recommend.<br />Cheers,<br />Principles of Grapevine Canopy Microclimate Manipulation Peter O'Connorhttp://www.wine-ev.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-7283696099854865642010-11-20T09:22:11.003-08:002010-11-20T09:22:11.003-08:00Peter: Can you point me to a study that links sola...Peter: Can you point me to a study that links solar radiation to wine quality?W. Blake Grayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17755307711801965966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-24508026723962776952010-11-20T05:53:00.480-08:002010-11-20T05:53:00.480-08:00Mr. Gray,
Thanks for your reply.
The fact that a m...Mr. Gray,<br />Thanks for your reply.<br />The fact that a measure like solar radiation is not hyped does not imply it is not essential. <br />And while the amount of sunlight is an intrinsic property (with causal relationship to the development of sound enological compounds) of a given vintage, a critic’s opinion is merely a subjective appraisal, with no verifiable (or falsifiable) correlation Peter O'Connorhttp://www.wine-ev.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-39633316751274623482010-11-19T17:42:28.148-08:002010-11-19T17:42:28.148-08:00Hi Kent, I've never paid much attention to 200...Hi Kent, I've never paid much attention to 2000/01, unfortunately. The '97/'98 ratings comparison was so stark that I've been paying attention ever since, so no need for a retroactive tasting. Sorry, can't help on '00/'01 though.<br /><br />Peter: Yes, I do think a critic's opinion is more important than the statistics on solar radiation. <br /><br />But more to W. Blake Grayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17755307711801965966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-39122811833741427392010-11-19T12:48:01.912-08:002010-11-19T12:48:01.912-08:00Mr. Gray,
Given adequate temperature parameters, s...Mr. Gray,<br />Given adequate temperature parameters, solar radiation is the single most important factor in the ripening process. <br />Or do you assign more importance to a critic’s opinion than to the amount of sunlight that a region has received in a specific season.Peter O'Connorhttp://www.wine-ev.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-41196690944957636182010-11-19T10:49:26.559-08:002010-11-19T10:49:26.559-08:00Another supposedly bad followed by good couple of ...Another supposedly bad followed by good couple of California vintages was 2000 and 2001. I don’t get a lot of chances to taste older vintages. Would you say the same is true with these two vintages as with the ‘97 and ’98? A couple years ago I compared the Beringer Knights Valley Cab 2000 to the 2001 and the difference was dramatic – the 2000 didn’t hold a candle to the 2001.Kent Bensonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-1315137503919807132010-11-19T10:33:22.531-08:002010-11-19T10:33:22.531-08:00Solar radiation? Are you serious?Solar radiation? Are you serious?W. Blake Grayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17755307711801965966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-76867227410550425992010-11-19T09:19:26.665-08:002010-11-19T09:19:26.665-08:00IMHO, vintage charts should not be based on “a pos...IMHO, vintage charts should not be based on “a posteriori” ratings, which solely state whether a vintage was good or bad.<br />Vintage charts should be based on descriptive “a priori” quantitative ratings that reflect the particular features of each vintage, like: heat (temperatures), precipitation & solar radiation. So that industry players can do their job in the best way possible and wine-evhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04881834511483220162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-70937283481670783952010-11-18T10:41:30.681-08:002010-11-18T10:41:30.681-08:00Even Bordeaux Vintage Charts are not as useful as ...Even Bordeaux Vintage Charts are not as useful as before ... they have global warming there and when the rare harvest is not good or better, they use advanced, modern techniques in the winery and in the vineyard to improve a difficult vintage.<br /><br />Vintage charts, like wine ratings, should not use numbers, but style indcating words that address alcohol level, ripeness, acidity, tannin, age Frederickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04304187435284090954noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-33336971860023294312010-11-18T09:42:11.219-08:002010-11-18T09:42:11.219-08:00I think a certain kind of vintage chart would work...I think a certain kind of vintage chart would work in CA.<br /><br />It would be an appellation by appellation chart that has ratings for different varieties in each appellation. That would be a chore to create, but the only kind that makes any sense.<br /><br />Tom WarkAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-21219828872565675052010-11-17T23:20:14.509-08:002010-11-17T23:20:14.509-08:00I think the comparison is flawed because you are c...I think the comparison is flawed because you are comparing California as a whole to individual regions in France. There would be more validity to a Russian River, Dry Creek Valley, Paso Robles, Napa, etc. vintage chart. Not everyones sole focus is Napa Cab.sonomaguynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-2565372154998121362010-11-17T12:51:45.417-08:002010-11-17T12:51:45.417-08:00Nice blog and very interesting point. Reading this...Nice blog and very interesting point. Reading this from Europe (Denmark) it kind of reasures me I'm not all wrong on Cali wines.<br />Stick with the winery and the style you like, and buy them in the cheapest vintages.<br /><br />Cheers and have fun<br /><br />Frederik Kreutzer<br />www.vinkreutzer.dk (In Danish, I'm sorry)VinKreutzer.dkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13331759106597925959noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-69245775470668595082010-11-17T12:20:36.315-08:002010-11-17T12:20:36.315-08:00I would think that the better blenders are seeing ...I would think that the better blenders are seeing some pretty good juices this yr.<br />Yes 2005 is much better than the yrs around to bad I only have a few bottles left.<br />jo6pacAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-83447105204721713522010-11-17T10:40:47.196-08:002010-11-17T10:40:47.196-08:00These are good points, but the nature of Californi...These are good points, but the nature of California wine and the market for it muddles both.<br /><br />Re super-hot vintages: Let's face it, many people like those wines. Plus, the nature of the fog layer on the coast, particularly in Sonoma County, generally prevents longterm heatwaves from being universal.<br /><br />Re the rising-tide effect: That would be a great argument if the wine W. Blake Grayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17755307711801965966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9210235767643862872.post-9375524128950513692010-11-17T10:19:09.023-08:002010-11-17T10:19:09.023-08:00Great read. I have a few thoughts, though. While...Great read. I have a few thoughts, though. While failed vintage are rare in CA because few vines are planted in truly marginal areas, what about super-ripe hot vintages? I suppose you'd say good producers sort out raisins and drop sunburned fruit. But if there's a big heatwave near harvest, this seems like something universally hard to mitigate. These wouldn't be failures, but Cabfrancophilehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10408854685852702400noreply@blogger.com