With the snow mostly gone from our Naramata Bench vineyard, our viticulture team was out in force with pruning shears ensuring our vines are ready for spring’s arrival. Last season we converted them to a new “cane” pruning system. In cane pruning, the viticulturist chooses two of the healthiest canes near the crown of the trunk, pruning away everything else from last year’s growth. These two reserved canes are then tied to the fruiting wire.
The buds on these canes will send up shoots in the growing season, which will be positioned into the trellis wires above the fruiting wire. Our winemaker Mary McDermott believes this method results in more balanced vines and therefore produces superior fruit.
Last week she and her team completed the pruning in our Langley vineyard (which was also converted to the same cane system in 2015). It is a significant change and we believe that the high quality fruit that is produced in Langley will help us expand our Chardonnay and Pinot Noir sparkling wine program.
