Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
We have a dream and you can help!
We have started a campaign to fund another great idea and all you have to do is give us money! To encourage your generosity, we’ve vinted up a slew of incentives for every budget. Check out our our gripping presentation by clicking “there’s more”.
St. Luke’s Little Summer
During the golden October of 2013, a new section of Clos Electrique was born.
Why Tea and Wine Don’t Mix
No matter what your political persuasion, I want you to be aware that the radical right of the Republican Party is adversely affecting my business in major ways. From their anti-immigrant diatribes meant to chase hispanics back across the border, to their inability to grasp climate change and now their tantrum regarding “Obamacare”, these so-called Tea Partiers are hurting American wine producers in major ways.
Why We Dry Farm
It is no secret that we do not use irrigation in our vineyards. The reasons for eschewing irrigation are multifarious but are rooted in a common notion that it makes sense and is truly sustainable. At the end of the day we know that our vineyards and way of life will endure for the next generation. A vineyard that exists on the notion of being sustained by a disappearing aquifer or stream cannot say the same.
Graft Without Corruption
In the late 19th century when the European wine industry was literally imploding due to a little root louse called Phylloxera, many vignerons fled to South America and California. Fortunately for those who stayed, a viable solution was discovered and the vineyards were eventually saved.
Since phylloxera eventually hitched a ride from Europe to the West Coast of North America, these rootstocks are as essential to the vineyards of California and Oregon as they are to Europe. In all these viticultural areas, many vignerons have learned how to join the scion (the part that provides the aerial part of the plant) to the root stock in a process known as “grafting”. Since the vineyards at Cameron contain a huge inventory of different clones of Pinot noir and Chardonnay as well as many Italian varieties, the only viable solution to expanding or replacing sections of the vineyard is to graft the vines ourselves. At first I thought “well, this isn’t rocket science” but after my first gallant attempts, I had to adjust that cogitation…
Ask Dr. Science
At this time of year the grapes are truly working for me, synthesizing things that will smell good and taste good, once the yeasts enter into the equation. Read on to understand a bit about the wonderful chemistry that occurs as the grapes ripen.
The Cameronstrano Swallows
Clos Electrique has for many years offered housing to a clan of Violet-Green Swallows. Every March, right around the equinox, they arrive from Costa Rica, setting up housing on “K clone drive”. They grace our presence for 4 months, and then, when the new flock is launched, the clan gathers together and one day they are gone. And so it was this past week, the last week of July, and how quiet it is all of a sudden.
Les Fleurs du Cameron
It is with absolute joy that we can announce the advent of flowering vines at Cameron Winery.
The Zen of Pruning
Pruning is the major endeavor occurring during winter in the vineyard.There are approximately 1500 vines per acre and 6 acres of vines at Clos Electrique. That’s 9000 vines that have to be properly groomed by the end of February.In the course of pruning, one enters a personal space of introspection and when it tacks toward seeking the truth, well, one has arrived at the Zen of pruning.
