Nor Cal spring frost

Ouch! My sympathies, Ric. Thanks for the update, though. That's the first I'd heard of it. Last time I spoke with my mother, it was sweltering in the Bay Area. Oh, well.

Best of luck to you, Mark Lipton

What will happen with vines due to frost?

Lower yields but more complexity?

No yields?

Drastically lower yields.

In the norhtern areas of France losses have reached as high as 60% or more in some areas. Champagne not too bad, Loire heavily hit.

Complexity would depend on the resto of the season...

Mike

Richard Neidich wrote:

I've had conversations with friends in the Bordelais who indicate significant crop loss there too. Pessac was mentioned...

Hope the "Beagles" will see some secondary buds.

True, but often if there is a secondary fruiting we see reduced yields but increased concentration (predictably).

-E

First and foremost - drastically reduced yield.

Concentration as a result of drastic yield is speculative. Older vines often bear less, but more concentrated fruit. It is commonplace to cull fruit from younger, higher producing vines in areas where the sooil and climate is such that the vines tend to over-produce. Assuming the grower is already managing their crop for quality, then the loss of such magnitude is unlikely to cause improved qualiy.

As someone else pointed out, quality is really dependent on the existing soil, climate and management practices - and on what happens to the vines and berries the rest of the year.

Sec> What will happen with vines due to frost?