by Dana on January 21, 2010 in From the Land
Blue Heron at Jordan Estate’s lower lake Over the last six days, our region has been blanketed with rain. Because the grapevines are currently dormant — and Sonoma County has experienced drought for four consecutive years — we welcome this heavy winter rainfall. While we’re pleased by these last series of storms, we continue [...]
by Todd on January 15, 2010 in From the Kitchen
In the Jordan estate garden, we focus on growing heirloom varieties and other fruits and vegetables that demand meticulous care. Our white asparagus arrived two months early this year (see winter garden post), so Sous Chef Manuel Reyes rushed out to the garden on Friday to bury all the asparagus spears in the ground. White asparagus [...]
by Dana on January 14, 2010 in From the Vineyards
While grapevines are dormant during winter, they still require a great deal of care. Pruning is the first step in nurturing these plants for the following season, and this critical work is completed during January, February and March. Our Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot vines are cordon trained, and we leave only a two-bud spur per vine to grow grapes [...]
by Dana on January 8, 2010 in From the Land
Our estate olives were harvested in November and in early December 2009. We recorded a quick video, which includes an olive harvest report and scenes from the last day of harvest in December. Small bins are used to harvest our olives in the Italian brucatura tradition, a method where our estate workers pull each olive from [...]
by Dana on January 3, 2010 in From the Vineyards
Every growing season—and grape harvest—has its own distinct personality. Grapes can be precocious or take their own sweet time to mature. Harvests can range from hectic to calm and thrilling to frustrating. These grapes are our babies in many ways. It’s the birth of a new vintage we plan carefully and anticipate at the end [...]
