Hardscrabble Journal

Good Set

Grape flowering is over and it seems that we are looking at a potentially large crop. “Set” is the term we use for the percentage of grape flowers that are successfully pollinated and become developing berries. Although we did have some rainy spells that could have negatively impacted pollination, overall set looks good. The only possible problem child could be Merlot. Merlot can often have set problems and we will withhold judgment until later in the week. 

The percentage of set determines the size of the crop, but the rapidity of bloom to set is the first indicator of quality. This year was fast as temperatures were warm. This means that each individual berry on a cluster will be ripening at the same time. Uniform ripening is important, especially with red wines. If the rest of the season goes well, we could be looking at some very sleek, silky red wines.

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Linden Vineyards / Learn More / Latest at Linden | Journal: June 15, 2021