-A formal dinner calls for special wines: Cabernet Sauvignon or other full-bodied reds, oak-aged Chardonnay, or "Reserve" - style bottlings. I'm thinking our Napa Cabernet Sauvignon or our new 2006 Carneros Chardonnay. If it's the boss, go with Whitehall Lane's 2004 Reserve Cabernet.

- A picnic calls for lighter-style, lower-alcohol, refreshing wines. Ideally our Sauvignon Blanc or Belmuscato- wines that can be chilled down as a counterbalance to the warm summer afternoon or evening.

- A celebration such as a birthday or anniversary calls for a "festive" wine such as Champagne or sparkling wine. Even better: the celebrant's favorite wine, regardless of type, if you know what it is. Even more better: a magnum or 3L of Whitehall Cabernet that you can put a message on with a silver sharpie.

- Ideal wines for a barbecue are those that are both fruity and spicy, to complement the "char" of the grill. Opt for Zinfandel, Petite Sirah or Rhone reds. I myself enjoy Whitehall Merlot with Q'd meats and veggies.

- On cold nights, wines higher in alcohol help warm the soul. Try a full-bodied red or a fortified wine such as Port. And we are bottling some in time for winter 2008 (you heard it here first!)

- For brunch, make selections similar to those you'd choose for a picnic. If egg dishes are involved, go with sparkling wine. I'm going with a mimosa or two! No Whitehall plug here.

- And if you still don't know what to bring, just drop me a line. I'm happy to help. Cheers!

Besides wine grapes being planted in our vineyards, there are a number of probes also in the ground to tell us how dry the soil is. These capacitance probes are used to generate a vineyard irrigation schedule based on the amount of moisture in the soil. This technology makes it possible to view water needs from the plants perspective.

The probe is burried deep in the soil with a wire running up the vine to a radio transporter that sits above the vines on a pole. This transporter relays the detailed information to a computer every 15 minutes for continuos soil moisture monitoring.

Why do we do this? (Another probing question!) By knowing how much water is in the soil, we can properly identify the amount of water that is being absorbed by the vine's root system throughout the growing season. This helps to control vine vigor in the summer months and helps monitor the amount of water in the leaves and grape berries as we get close to harvest.

It is all part of the science and technology that we employ in the vineyards to grow the best grapes and make great wines.

Cover crops also called "green manure" are broadly defined as any plant grown to improve any number of conditions associated with sustainable agriculture. They are fundamental, sustainable tools used to manage soil fertility, soil quality, water, weeds, pests, diseases, and wildlife.

The endless yellow blooms painted up and down the valley is mustard, which is common is not only Napa Valley but the California coast as well. Although pretty, mustard plays a very small role in the production and management of vines.

Mustard field as seen from WLW parking lot

From Dean I learned there are two different kinds of cover crops: permanent and seasonal. The seasonal seeds are planted in the fall after harvest. They grow during the winter and then are cultivated in the spring. This is done in order to prevent erosion. When I heard erosion I thought, "Huh, we don't have hillside vineyards?" Dean went on to explain that even though the vineyards appear to be flat there is still a possibility of losing good topsoil in the winter months.

The purpose for permanent cover crops and/or weeds is to have something living in the soil at all times. Other benefits are to aid in weed control, reduce soil erosion, and to increase soil and water quality. Some soils are extremely rich so there is almost a necessity to grow permanent ground coverage. Our Bommarito vineyard located on Galleron Road in the Rutherford Appellation of the Napa Valley has such soil. So these 25 acres have a cover crop year round.

The traditional cover crop we use are fava beans or broad beans. Broad beans have a long tradition of cultivation in Old World agriculture, being among the most ancient plants in cultivation and also among the easiest to grow. Fava's are utilized because they can over-winter and because as a legume, they fix nitrogen in the soil.

Fava Beans in our Oak Glen Vineyard

Another important thing I learned is how these crops are planted. Cover crops are planted in either one of two ways: every row or every other row. It all depends on how much vigor we want to control in the vineyard. The vines and cover crops compete for water and nutrients. If there are cover crops planted on in every row there is more vine stress and therefore the capability to control the vivacity of the vines. If the cover crops are planted in every other row than the vine is able to put more energy into its leaves and branches thus giving more to produce better grapes.

Every row- Fawn Park Vineyard

Every other row- Estate Vineyard

No cover crops- Fawn Park Vineyard

I even conned Fernando into joining me. Oohhh... busted!!!

After several months of what seemed like daily dirt pushing, the early stages of a building began to appear. On the morning of March 31st, the cement mixers started showing up two at a time. But the coolest part of the day was watching a giant remote controlled arm soaring through the air and dumping concrete all over the job site. Apparently this contraption is known as a truck-mounted boom pump. It uses a remote-controlled articulating robotic arm to distribute the concrete. The guy working the video game-like remote control moved the boom with pinpoint accuracy and even used a little body English to guide the boom. (He sort of reminded me of an old boyfriend who spent way too much time playing video games, creepy.) There were workers inside the trenches, slogging through the wet concrete as they guided and smoothed it around.

I got to thinking, what if I were working the remote and one or two of my co-workers (or that old boyfriend) were in the trench guiding the concrete... they never did find Jimmy Hoffa!

"It looks like crop circles out there," Wendy said. And it's true our 'barrel warehouse' resembles a scene from a Sci-fi flick. But in the place of eerie cornfields there are picturesque grape vines. The trenches for the foundation are dug and if you briefly look at the dirt it sure looks like we had an extraterrestrial visitor here at Whitehall. I'm just glad that I'm not here at night or my imagination would really get the best of me... You've just crossed over into the Twilight Zone...( Do do do doo... do do do doo... do do do doo...)
TV Themes - Twilight Zone.mp3

The technical term for those designs scratched deep into the dirt is "excavated footings," or so I am told. This large grid pictured below is the outline of the new building and where the foundation will be. I am really looking forward to the progress and actually seeing something rising out of the dirt, like a building and not the man from Mars.

]]> http://www.whitehalllane.com/blog/2008/04/crop_circles.php http://www.whitehalllane.com/blog/2008/04/crop_circles.php Start with Dirt, Add Water, Stir with Excavator and Build a Barrel Warehouse! Mon, 07 Apr 2008 16:23:18 -0800 I always assumed that wine had to be expensive in order to be good. I figured this was a safe assumption considering cheap hard liquor tastes exactly like what it is- cheap hard liquor. And the cheap stuff is never good, no matter what you mix it with! It's not that way with wine with the exception being: cheap or expensive, because nothing really mixes good with wine.
(I don't care what my mom says about the 1970's and home made wine coolers.) To my surprise what I have found is that while a more expensive bottle of wine will often times taste better, you don't have to drop a ton in order for the wine to be a good-quality bottle. One thing that I must say for all the newbie's out there, don't go out and buy a bottle of wine just because of the costly price tag. Do some homework and by homework I mean taste some wine. Best kind of research involves drinking right? Sigh... reminds me of college. (Sorry Mom) So go out wine tasting with your friends. Mix it up a little. Instead of going bar hopping Friday night, like you always do, go out wine tasting. There are many local wine bars with staffs that are more often than not incredibly friendly and very helpful. I promise you you will have some fun and you might even learn something about wine too. In all seriousness, what I have learned is that price is the lease accurate barometer for quality but it's a place to start. But if you're looking to buy a bottle tonight and don't have time to do any research generally a mid-range bottle is a safe buy.

For those that live in the East Bay there is a wonderful establishment in Walnut Creek, the Artisan Wine Lounge & Cafe. The feeling of the lounge is very laid back yet with a chic and modern influence. For directions and further information visit them at http://artisanwl.com/index.html.

]]> http://www.whitehalllane.com/blog/2008/03/bigger_the_price_tag_better_th.php http://www.whitehalllane.com/blog/2008/03/bigger_the_price_tag_better_th.php Sticking my nose in it! Mon, 31 Mar 2008 16:02:29 -0800 Having an office at a working construction site sure has its hindrances. I am just about used to the periodic earthquakes. But our Office Manager is tired of the constant shaking and thinks it loosened a couple of fillings. There's also the afternoon jack hammering, the buzzing and rumbling of equipment stirring about forcing me to yell into the phone. And of course the irresistible distraction of "Hmm... what they doing now?" All and all it's rather entertaining to watch the equipment moving dirt, destroying concrete, digging trenches, and demolishing walls. Check out our new crush pad! Things are rolling along nicely.

]]> http://www.whitehalllane.com/blog/2008/03/rolling_right_along.php http://www.whitehalllane.com/blog/2008/03/rolling_right_along.php Start with Dirt, Add Water, Stir with Excavator and Build a Barrel Warehouse! Mon, 24 Mar 2008 11:01:14 -0800