Viticulture Association of the Santa Cruz Mountains

The Start of a New Vintage:  2023

  • Ormsby Trail Vineyard, Feb. 2023

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Upcoming Meetings

The March 16 meeting has been postponed due to damages resulting from recent storms, and will be rescheduled (TBA).
Grape Vine Trunk Disease and Pruning Sealant, with Alan Haack, SePRO Ag
Including an Application Demo
Also:  Frost Mitigation, and more
 
At Ascona Vineyard
This meeting (when rescheduled) will include a presentation on Vine Trunk Disease and pruning sealant with Alan Haack, SePRO Ag, makers of the biofungicide Bio-Tam. And we’ll have a demo of its application. We’ll also talk about ways to mitigate frost damage. And view a variety of training systems in use at Ascona.
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Friday, March 3, 1:00-3:00pm – in person at 3P Vineyard in Soquel
 
Storm Preparedness and Damage Recovery, Plus Funding for Vineyard Conservation Practices
– with Rich Casale and Drew Mather, NRCS
 
 
We have had some fierce storms, a lot of rain and high winds, in the past couple of months. Rich Casale and Drew Mather of the local NRCS office (Santa Cruz County) will address:
– storm preparedness;
– what to do (and not to do) in an emergency if you experience storm damage
– storm damage recovery practices and/or strategies;
– and NRCS/Farm Service financial and technical assistance programs throughout the year for conservation and other management practices.
 
You may have had trees uprooted on your property that have compromised soil retention, drainage or erosion issues, etc. And if not yet then it will still be good to know what to do to avoid and address in the future. Plus, you’ll find out about some valuable funding assistance through the NRCS for a wide range of conservation practices, of which some of our growers have benefited from over the years.
 
If you have particular damage issues that you are interested to have addressed during the program you can email Rich ahead of time at richcasale3@gmail.com .
 
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For more information on meetings, contact info@vascm.org

See  recent meetings on the Meetings page here

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See the Buy/Sell Exchange here for Santa Cruz Mountains winegrapes available for the 2023 harvest, equipment for sale/wanted, and more, as posted. Watch the Exchange page as more classifieds are posted.

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VASCM Membership

Membership dues are only $50 annually and are due at the beginning of the year.  Membership is open to those sharing an interest in viticulture in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Please download the Membership Application from the Membership page here (and please include the form with renewals in order to convey any changes).

Mission

To serve the common interests of all Santa Cruz Mountains appellation winegrape producers, and to enhance the quality, profitability and reputation of winegrape production in the appellation through promotion and education.

Association Profile

President:  Mary Lindsay, Muns Vineyard

Vice President:  Ken Swegles,  Rhizos Viticulture

Secretary: June Salsbury, Spring Hollow Vineyard

Treasurer:  Rick Clarke, Empty Nest Vineyard

Contact Information

Postal address
P.O. Box 933,  Soquel, CA 95073-0933
Electronic mail
General Information: info@vascm.org
Webmaster: webmaster@vascm.org
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Harvest, 2019

Spring was long and cold and brought a lot of rain throughout the region and with it pressure from mildew and other fungal diseases in many vineyards.  Rain during bloom in some vineyards will affect croploads.  For those vineyards that started bloom after the rains the crop is looking very strong.  In many vineyards bloom was late, and then budbreak, and then veraison. Veraison started in many vineyards in August, and harvest is later than usual.  Although an unusual growing season for many it has resulted in plentiful croploads with excellent fruit. Many growers are enthusiastic about the 2019 vintage.

Harvest 2018

The 2018 vintage by and large is seeing excellent crop loads and stellar quality. Cool temps from early Sept. on allowed for long hang time and for many a delayed harvest that developed fruit flavors. However, the myriad microclimates of the mountains makes it difficult to generalize, and a warm August precipitated ripening and harvest for some.  Growers and winemakers are excited by the 2018 vintage and what it promises in the bottle!

  • Burrell School Vineyards

To serve the common interests of all Santa Cruz Mountains appellation winegrape producers, and to enhance the quality, profitability and reputation of winegrape production in the appellation through promotion and education.