Pruning Completed
Remember Climate Change?
Coming soon: Weekly “Raid The Cellar” Offers
Linden Direct
Read MoreCorona Closing
Linden will be closed the weekends of March 21 & 22 and March 28 & 29.
We will post updates on Linden’s web site. I will also send updates via email as circumstances evolve. We will refund all prepaid reservations.
Read MoreWabi Sabi
Linden’s Wabi Sabi is an impulsive, generous, fruit driven wine with richness, loads of texture, and a creamy finish. It is so outside Linden’s stylistic and philosophical wheelhouse that it makes absolutely no sense.
Linden Evolution Seminars
Hardscrabble and Avenius Vineyards: Long Learning Curves Finally Crest
After decades of trial and error with our red wine vineyard blocks, we are finding our groove.
Read MoreTerroir Project Update
Exactly three years ago I began chronicling the process of removing and replanting a vineyard with the goal of producing better wine. We are now at the halfway point and 2020 will mark the “virgin” harvest: the first vintage.
Read MoreVintage Variation
Vintage refers to the weather influences during the growing season the year the grapes were harvested. That date on the bottle encapsulates a six-month saga beginning in April with bud break and ending on the autumn day the grapes are picked. The weather during that period impacts yields, quality and wine style.
Read MorePairing Wines for Thanksgiving
The classic Thanksgiving dinner of turkey, stuffing, Brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes, and cranberry sauce is decidedly wine unfriendly. This riot of flavors and textures will probably clash with any one special wine. Something sweet, bubbly, or pink probably has the best chance of success.
Read MoreVintage 2019: Good, but just how good?
The 2019 harvest finished up several weeks ago. This week we pressed the last of the Cabernet Sauvignon, which is one of the stars of the vintage. It was a very good year, but also very unusual, so there is some hesitation to “declare” the vintage.
Read MoreSingular Task
Last week’s heat wave accelerated ripening. Harvest will start very soon, but the peak of activity is still many weeks away. This is why September’s weather is so critical in determining the overall quality and style of the vintage. All we ask for is cool, dry and no hurricanes.
Grapes into Wine
Follow the 2019 Harvest
Linden will be closed October 11, 12, and 13
Read MoreTransition Time
Late July brings a shift to the vineyard and to the cellar.
Patience Rewards: Bottle Evolution Seminars August 18 & 25 — Sold out
Wines constantly evolve during aging in the cellar and in the bottle. Bottled wines gain complexity and integration with time. So what does that mean? There is only one way to find out.
Read MoreVintage 2019
Vintage 2019 is progressing well. The first milestone of a vintage’s success is flowering. This year’s flowering was early (late May through the first week in June). Conditions were ideal with warm, sunny, dry days.
Terroir Project
2018’s planting struggled to get going this spring. Some vines did not make it through the winter, as they were too weak after the unforgiving rains and lack of sun last year. The planting is looking healthier now.
Read MoreSpring!
Spring is unfolding nicely. Budbreak was right on time. No frost, and enough (but not too much) rain. Wonderfully normal with no surprises, just what we farmers hope for.
Fortunately, this spring’s excitement is contained to the tasting room. Three new, distinct wines have just been released.
2018 Rosé | Silver Lining
2017 Village Chardonnay | Youthful Exuberance
2017 Avenius Sauvignon Blanc | Patience Rewards
Read More
Spring is late this year.
Chardonnay, being our most precocious variety, is the indicator of spring’s progression. No sign of bud swell.
No Expectations
Vintage 2018 was difficult.
Fridays
Linden is now open Fridays.
Evolution Seminar with Jim Law | April 14
Jim Law will present older library vintages along with some yet to be released wines.
Terroir Project
Three years ago I started writing about the decision to remove and replant the vines growing on one of Hardscrabble’s best vineyard sites.
Special Cellar Tastings | 2019 #2
For those interested in adding more depth to their wine knowledge, Linden’s current cellar tasting is a classic.
Read MoreReady to get going
This winter has been uneventful, laidback, and kind of boring. Just how we like it. Vintage 2018 took a lot out of us and extra time was needed for a proper recovery. We are now ready to get going. We are giving you lots of reasons to visit.
2017 Riesling released
Linden Evolution Seminars expand
Second Special Cellar Tastings of 2019
Jim Law at Field & Main Restaurant
Read MoreSnow
Snow is magical and we love it at Linden.
Linden Evolution Seminars | Reservations
Linden will recommence a series of in-depth seminars that focus on our thirty years of winegrowing. Reservations can only be made on Linden’s website. (No phone reservations accepted.)
Special Cellar Tastings | Reservations
In order to make your weekend planning easier, reservations can now be secured online for Linden’s Saturday Special Cellar Tastings. Walk-ins are also welcome if space permits.
Linden Wine Dinner | The Blue Door Kitchen and Inn
We are thrilled to have a restaurant of such caliber so close to Linden.
Read MoreFree Form December
Winter slows the pace at Linden. After an intense and often stressful harvest season, we can now take time to get re-acquainted with our past vintages. For the last several years we have enjoyed sharing this process with all of you.
Terroir Project
The trials and tribulations of the 2018 growing season have consumed my attention, so it has been a while since I’ve written about Linden’s Terroir Project.
Read MoreVintage 2018
Vintage 2018 finished last week with the harvest of Petit Manseng. While it was a difficult year, I’m very confident about the decisions that were made and the wines that will be bottled. As winegrowers we know that there is no alternative to the hand that we are dealt.
Read MoreFragile
This has been the wettest growing season I have ever experienced.
The New Website
For those of you who have an interest in following the progression of the 2018 vintage, I have been faithfully posting weekly updates in Hardscrabble Journal on Linden’s new web site.
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