Tom Scott Vineyard Newsletter - Winter 2012 - Barn Burner Cabernet Sauvignon
Dear Friends,
Another vintage off the vines! This year we harvested our 2012 vintage on October 27th. Our crew of trained pickers and talented amateur mule-skinners brought in our largest harvest ever - fully 30% more fruit than any prior year! Not only was the crop larger than ever before, but also the fruit quality was spectacular! While nature is never fully predicable and we spend most of our time being watchful and responsive, we must say we did see this coming.
 Farming requires patience, forethought and faith. Each harvest is the result of everything that has gone before - the maturity of the vines, the development of the root systems and canopy and the set and ripening of the fruit. While all of these factors are the result of nature, driven by the weather and soil and thus pretty much out of our hands, some things we can influence. Through pruning, canopy management (thinning, positioning) crop thinning, vineyard floor management and soil enhancement, we are able to work with nature to arrive at the tastiest fruit possible for each vintage.
This year we knew, due to the wet and cooler weather of the last two years, that our vines had greatly expanded their root systems. Our spring was picture perfect, and the vines responded by developing large canopies that gave them above ground growth to match their root growth.
The weather in 2012 was truly a "Napa Classic," the days were warm, the nights cool and there was no rain from May to October. This optimal Mediterranean-like climate gave us ideal growing conditions.
 This year, more than ever, our work in the vineyard became all about "balance." We had to tame the canopy growth and thin the fruit as usual, but this year everything was more - more canopy necessitated our leaving more fruit to maintain vine balance. So, we knew last winter that depending on this year's weather, we could be looking forward to a record crop. And once spring arrived, we knew that barring an unexpected event, 2012 would be an exceptional crop, not only in volume but also in quality.
It'll be 2015 before we taste the results of this year's bountiful harvest, but as you can tell, we are very excited!
Visitors always ask if we have any "down" time or time off, and the answer is a resounding ... yes and no! From the time we harvest in the fall, until we begin the "forced march" of pruning in mid-February, we do have a change of pace. In the late fall and the winter months, our vines are dormant and during this inactive period, we always slow down a little. But fall is also the time we need to replenish our soils if needed - getting our supplements down before the first heavy rains. It's also time to "winterize" our irrigation system, making sure our valves and fittings won't freeze on those cold winter nights.
 The arrival of the first rains means our vineyard greens-up and so we must begin mowing to keep our "cover crop" in check. We also need to remove all remaining grape clusters, usually late setting "second" crop that's not ripe at harvest. We don't want mildew to overwinter on these "mummies." And of course all those "projects" that we've been too busy to tackle all year long, can now be addressed. Oh, and did we mention family and holidays? This is especially joyful for us now that our grandson Spencer is fully part of the celebration. All in all, this is a wonderful time of the year, when we can take time off without worrying about the fruit, the weather or the birds and their effect on our vines! Our fruit is now wine and in the safe keeping of our wonderful winemaker, Bill Ballentine.
We had a chance to share our 2004 Barn Burner with some friends over dinner recently, and all we can say is ... wow! It was wonderful! For those of you that don't have a few bottles tucked away in your cellar, our 2004 is still available as part of our "Six-Vintage Vertical."
 We wanted to mention too that we have five 2009 3L "Large Format" bottles still available. These are the only large formats we have left, of any size and any vintage, until we release our 2010 large formats in April 2013. If you haven't seen our beautifully etched and hand-painted bottles, you can see more on our website. They are unique and they are being offered ... "first come, first served." Get in touch with us if you're interested in owning one of these pieces of Barn Burner art; the best part of course, is that they're filled with Barn Burner Cabernet Sauvignon!
Thank you to everyone that sends us pictures and comments about our wine. We have begun to share them more regularly on Facebook. So, you can post directly to our Facebook page or continue to send them to us and we'll post them. Hearing from Barn Burner fans always makes our day! We know we love Barn Burner and the experience of sharing it with visitors, but we're always gratified to know you love it too. If you have not already done so, please "Like" and follow us on Facebook, as we can never have too many friends!
In closing, we raise our glass to "good wine and good friends and good cheer!" Happy Holidays!
 Tom and Lauren Scott
www.tomscottvineyard.com
www.tomscottvineyard.com/wineshop
info@tomscottvineyard.com
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