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SAVE THE DATE!

December 3, 5-8pm 2023

LWGA member holiday party. The official invitation with RSVP link will follow later this month

The Board of the Lamorinda Winegrowers Association is establishing a new committee to develop the educational topics and plans for future member meetings. This will be a great opportunity for LWGA members to get more involved. The time commitment for this committee should be fairly minimal.

The Board encourages anyone who is interested to join this committee. If you are interested or have any questions, please email Gerard van Steyn at gerardvs1@gmail.com or David Hicks at dh1780@yahoo.com

The next member meeting which will be this Sunday, starts at 3pm not 4pm, as previously announced.

It will be in the parking lot behind Wine Thieves – 3401 Mt. Diablo Blvd, Lafayette. The weather should be perfect, so please come to share in the excitement about the quality of grapes and wine this year!

Dear Grape and Wine Folks,

Our next meeting will be on Sunday October 8th, 4pm in the parking lot behind Wine Thieves- 3401 Mount Diablo Blvd, Lafayette, CA. What a great growing season we have had this year!… none of the crazy heat waves of previous years. (It seems like it has been a unusually cool year, but I was recently reading that it actually was a normal temperature year, unlike the silly hot temperatures of the last few years. Grape quality should be excellent this year!)

At this meeting we will have an open discussion about the grape growing year. Everyone will be encouraged to talk about their grapes, their viticulture and their harvest (actual or projected). If you have questions, or tried something new that worked or did not, you can share that with the group, and even ask for input. If you had any problems or issues, this meeting will be a great opportunity to bring them up to discuss with the group. And folks can summarize their harvest as in the quantity and quality of grapes, and even pH and TA, particularly if it was different than previous years. There is even some talk about making this a full harvest dance and let loose party… ok that was me, just suggesting 😉

Please park on Mount Diablo or another side street. And it was great to see everyone step up with tasty food and appetizers at the last meeting. Let’s continue this as our new tradition, because who doesn’t like good food, with good wine, and good friends?! Oh and bring a bottle of vino to share with the group, chairs and warm clothing, in case it cools off. Party hats and harvest party attire and party attitude is encouraged.

Members,

The board has heard from a number of members that they are having performance issues with hired vineyard managers. The issues include not timely spraying for PM and/or bird netting installed or either not being done at all. Additionally the handling of trapping for coons and skunks and not having crews available for harvest.

Your board wants to understand any and all of these types of potential problems. There is little folks can do this year but we need to discover the number and types problems and find solutions. One potential solution is to pool and collectively retain a provider for a group of our membership

Please let us know if your vineyard management provider HAS NOT performed to your satisfaction, and on the other hand if your particular provider HAS performed please let us know that as well?

Please email you response to Dave Ray at: Dave@reliezvalleyvineyards.com

Thanks, David Hicks, President

LWGA Colleagues,

We at Captain Vineyards are offering our grapes this year as our winemaker Sal Captain has a knee injury. We might have not met some of you yet, so here is a little bit about us.

We’re a founding member of LWGA and I served 15 years on the board. We operate a micro boutique (~350 cases per year) family vineyard and winery rated 5 stars on Google, Yelp and Trip Advisor. In 2005, we planted six red, French varieties, naturally grown and dry-farmed on our Moraga hillside in clay loam soil.

Below is an approximation of the amount available, and producing an expected 6 tons this year:

Petite Sirah –  Est. Tons: 3.0 Vine Count: 1200 Clone: 03NM Rootstock: 3309C
Petit Verdot – Est. Tons: 1.5 Vine Count: 700 Clone: 400 Rootstock: 101-14
Cabernet Sauvignon – Est. Tons: 0.9 Vine Count: 200 Clone: 169 Rootstock: 420
Cabernet Franc – Est. Tons: 0.5 Vine Count: 700 Clone: 214BE Rootstock: 3309
Pinot Noir – Est. Tons: 0.8 Vine Count: 700 Clone: 115BE Rootstock: 101-14
Grenache – (negligible) Vine Count: 50

We’ve won county and statewide recognition for our green and sustainable practices.

NBC “California live” at Captain Vineyards

Please contact us to arrange a visit to our vineyard/winery to discuss details and logistics!

Cheers!

Susan Captain

www.captainvineyards.com

Email us: sara@captainvineyards.com, Call or Text us: 415-960-7053

Greetings, dear wine folks!

Our meetings would be even more enjoyable, if we all got into the habit of bringing something tasty to share. Good wine and good food, after all, are meant for each other!

So please bring an appetizer, warm dish or dessert to share to the meeting tomorrow, July 30th 3:00 to 6pm PM at Daniel and Annemieke Howsepian’s home, located at 3345 Hermosa Dr. off Reliez Valley Rd in Lafayette.  Ph # 925.828.7000

Hi, my husband and I are wondering if anyone in the LMGA has had any experience with the green laser for deterring birds from your vineyard. Manufacturer is the Bird Control Group out of the Netherlands.

Thanks so much,

Karen and Todd Watson

Hello All – 

I am happy to announce that Crane Terrace Winery is now a Bonded winery!  

For those of you we have yet to meet, we have 4500 vines in the rolling hills of the Sleepy Hollow neighborhood in Orinda.  The vineyard was planted in 2003.  We grow Syrah, Grenache, Chardonnay, and Roussanne.  

I’d like to thank Andrea Anderson of Beer and Wine Services, Inc. who has been an outstanding guide and compliance person, navigating the entire process for us (really, she does it all). If you need help with becoming bonded or compliance, Andrea can be reached at 707-942-6911.  Her website is www.beer-and-wine-services.com.

Cheers! 

Leanne Pilot 

Crane Terrace Winery

Members:

LWGA’s next membership meeting will be July 30 3:00 PM at Daniel Howsepians home in Lafayette, located at 3345 Hermosa Dr. off Reliez Valley Rd in Lafayette.  Ph # 925.828.7000.  

Our presentation at this meeting will be three of our Members,  Bill Scanlin, Eero Teerikorpi, and me, David Hicks will be pouring one of our award wining wines for your tasting and enological pleasure.  Each maker will describe the grape source details and outline the winemaking process and answer all your questions.  

Please feel free to bring your own wines and nibbles to share as is our custom.   

As growers and winemakers we all love that this year Mother Nature has been kind with ample rain, lots of sunshine and moderate temperatures which indication of a great crop throughout the State.  If you haven’t already begun getting suckers off your vines and leaves away from you grapes bunches get on it today.  Also pay attention the the angles of your tendrils if they are slumping down along your cane you are down a bit in water.  

Looking forward to seeing lots of you on Sunday July 30 at Daniels.

Regards,
David Hicks