ROCO Winery - 2008 Vintage Notes
Low heat accumulation coupled with drier than normal weather March through May, led to one of those growing seasons where Willamette Pinot noir doesn't bloom until July. Bloom in 2008 was four weeks late compared to the norm. When this happens, the weather is perfect for pollination, setting a whopper crop that has no hope of ripening come late October. We chose to (drop) cut off over 2/3 of the clusters on the vines in late August and wait for Indian summer conditions. This allows the opportunity for all of the berries left on the vine to fully ripen.
In August we received the much needed rainfall before veraison. This was followed by bright, sunny, cool nights that are ideal for ripening Pinot noir at the ‘end of the growing season'.
A light rain fell on October 3rd -which knocked the dust off the vines and seemed to perk them up for final photosynthesis. A cold snap on October 11 froze vine leaves on the valley floor but not on the hillside slopes. The resulting Pinot noir fruit from our vineyards on the mountainsides was richly dark colored, and had the snap of biting into an apple texture. ROCO's Wits' End Vineyard's mid-elevation, south facing slope is ideal for full fruit ripening in these late starting, late ending growing seasons.