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Feature Article
An uncommon view of Eaglepoint Ranch vineyard in Mendocino [Photo: © Thom Elkjer]
Mendocino vineyards painted white
MARCH 10, MENDOCINO COUNTY -- an unusual late-winter blizzard blankets Mendocino wine country
by
Thom Elkjer
March 10, 2006
March 9th will be a night to remember in Mendocino this year. Recent years have seen late rains or no rains during March -- a critical passage for vineyards from winter dormancy
to spring budding and flowering -- but those anomalies pale in
comparison to the blizzard that blanketed parts of the county last
night.
It's normal for upper elevations in rugged Mendocino County to get dusted white in the winter months, because the county's mountains top the 5000 foot level. There are also plenty of vineyards above the 1000 foot elevation (the entire Mendocino Ridge appellation lies well above that mark, for example), and they too have been known to take a few inches of fast-melting snow from time to time.
But this storm dumped snow down to elevations of just 400 feet in the southern and central parts of the county, thus reaching scores of vineyards that almost never see anything colder than a bit of hail.
I drove arterial Highway 128 from Alexander Valley to Anderson Valley during the 8:00 pm hour on the 9th, and shortly after I crossed into Mendocino in the hills between the two valleys I was battling swirling snow that kept up for more than 20 miles. Even when the road ran alongside creeks coursing with the results of heavy rains, the temperature hovered at the freezing point and the white stuff was everywhere. Even the tow trucks answering emergency calls had to trundle carefully up and down the grades.
The breaking dawn revealed that the snow wasn't going anywhere, either. Higher-elevation vineyards such as Eaglepoint Ranch remained fluffy white all through the day on March 10th, due to a stubborn cold front that seemed unable to lift itself up and move on. Some forecasts call for still more snow to fall.
Fortunately most of the county has been cold and wet for more than a week as a series of storms poured daily rain into the vineyards, so there was not much chance of premature bud-break for this blizzard to obliterate. Still, a lingering freeze may be hard on younger vines whose sap was already rising to meet the vernal equinox, just 11 days away.
~ Thom Elkjer, Mendocino Editor
To comment on Thom Elkjer writings and thoughts, contact him at t.elkjer@appellationamerica.com
It's normal for upper elevations in rugged Mendocino County to get dusted white in the winter months, because the county's mountains top the 5000 foot level. There are also plenty of vineyards above the 1000 foot elevation (the entire Mendocino Ridge appellation lies well above that mark, for example), and they too have been known to take a few inches of fast-melting snow from time to time.
But this storm dumped snow down to elevations of just 400 feet in the southern and central parts of the county, thus reaching scores of vineyards that almost never see anything colder than a bit of hail.
I drove arterial Highway 128 from Alexander Valley to Anderson Valley during the 8:00 pm hour on the 9th, and shortly after I crossed into Mendocino in the hills between the two valleys I was battling swirling snow that kept up for more than 20 miles. Even when the road ran alongside creeks coursing with the results of heavy rains, the temperature hovered at the freezing point and the white stuff was everywhere. Even the tow trucks answering emergency calls had to trundle carefully up and down the grades.
The breaking dawn revealed that the snow wasn't going anywhere, either. Higher-elevation vineyards such as Eaglepoint Ranch remained fluffy white all through the day on March 10th, due to a stubborn cold front that seemed unable to lift itself up and move on. Some forecasts call for still more snow to fall.
Fortunately most of the county has been cold and wet for more than a week as a series of storms poured daily rain into the vineyards, so there was not much chance of premature bud-break for this blizzard to obliterate. Still, a lingering freeze may be hard on younger vines whose sap was already rising to meet the vernal equinox, just 11 days away.
~ Thom Elkjer, Mendocino Editor
To comment on Thom Elkjer writings and thoughts, contact him at t.elkjer@appellationamerica.com
