Buscando Nemo!

Sorpresa

At the butt crack of dawn on Friday morning, I pulled into Sorpresa Vineyard, which sits atop a small mount overlooking Dry Creek Valley. Alson, the proprietor and workhorse behind the vineyard, was out and about with a fresh cup of coffee and awaiting a translator.

I was the first 'manager' on the scene and the thick fruit set was beginning to make the boys anxious, a heavy drool beginning to drip from the side of their mouths. After confering with El Presidente I set the boys on their way hooting and hollering down the first few rows.

Although included in the Dry Creek Appellation the vineyard benefits from cooler nights and sunny days tempered with cooling late afternoon winds. This is not the plump fruit forward Shiraz of Dry Creek, but rather a rich, dark, brooding blue fruit Syrah much more akin to Kick ranch, with its own nuances of course.

Glenn pulled up shortly after me and then Paco, the man who could level with the guys in their own terms. No matter how much spanish you know, as a gabacho you will always be limited by a thick accent and an inability to speak in essence 'Mexican' spanish.

I pulled out first with the brushburn, hauling 3 tons of Glenn's Syrah to the local custom crush facility. The descent down from Sorpresa was long and winding and has been built up by Mondo as being a treacherous hellride. Aside from the descent came the fact that I was hauling the head hancho's fruit, which goes into his flagship vineyard designate Syrah. To put it succintly, these grapes needed safe passage to the cellar if I didn't want to be strung up by a barrel chested man from East Texas.

Coming down the mount was not much different from hauling out a 4 ton tractor on a tilt trailer. Quick like a rabbit I hurried the cool grapes to the facility. Pulling out back onto the freeway Paco rang asking me to give him my ETA. Responding cooly I replied that I dropped and was heading to my next appointment. "Damn man, that was fast" he replied.

Not known for my intrepid speed I had to crack a little smile.

***

Buscando Nematodes

When I lived in Chile it was a guilty pleasure for Dan Cross and I to grab a micro to the giant mall outside of Conce and grab a Sunday. Hell, the movies only cost a few bucks. In reality we tried to catch any of the handfull of Chilean feautures that came out during the year, but I would be lying to say that it wasn't just as entertaining to read the Spanish names of beloved features filmed in the United States and abroad. Although Buscando Nemo or Finding Nemo in the English speaking world was as direct of an translation as you can have, it still made my guata jiggle from laughter.

Friday afternoon, standing neck deep in a ditch, the image was rekindled as my mind swam in a sea of Spanglish. Collecting soil samples to gauge the nematode population at Susanna's Vineyard on Gravenstein highway I drifted back to the days of lazy afternoons, now well behind me. Diggin in the dirt is a way more fun anyway right?

And what the hell are nematodes you might ask? Nematodes, or "roundworms," have a can high concentration in areas of drought or with sandy, compacted shallow soil. Much like the conditions at Susanna's. In areas with high populations they can be responsible for poor vine growth and extensive root damage with will conversely have a negative impact on the vine's fruit quality. Samples are of course required at varying heights to determine if and how bad the infestation might be and chosing the best remedy for the situation.

Hence, my makeshift Indiana Jones glamshot. Trowell and plastic baggie in hand I am digging for the cause of liquid gold.