Among the projects I worked on was the design and establishment of vineyards for the Chateau Camou winery, located in the Guadalupe Valley, Baja California. The first stage called for planting 14 hectares of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. The second stage, likely to begin in 2008, planned for approximately 23 more hectares, with a further 15 hectares or so of various varieties to be planted in the following years.
My working philosophy has always been that to know what can be done, you first need to know what you have to work with. For any wine project to succeed, a series of studies and analyses must therefore be carried out before investing in and executing it. In this case, these included the following, among others:
Prospective soil analysis and interpretation of the results for viticulture
To understand the soil conditions of the area to be planted, a prospective soil survey is carried out to a predetermined depth to identify the soil characteristics that matter most when establishing a vineyard.
The values for N, P, K, EC, pH and other soil parameters obtained from each sample are then interpolated over the entire area using GIS tools.
With these interpolation results, it is possible to determine the planting distances and densities for each sector. They also make it possible to set corrective pre-planting fertilizer rates tailored to the specific needs of each sector, meeting the requirements of the crop while maximizing the economic and ecological efficiency of these agrochemicals.
Climatological analysis and determination of bioclimatic indices for viticulture
As is well known, soil is not the only factor that plays a fundamental role in the development and success of a vineyard; the prevailing climate of the region is just as important. Although there are few tools that allow us to control climate, it is important to at least understand how it behaves over the course of the season.
To this end, data from weather stations installed near the property, or from existing ones, are used to calculate well-known indices and other key parameters that help predict how the vineyard will behave and plan the season’s work. The parameters studied include chill hours, growing degree days, the frost-free period and potential evapotranspiration, among others.
Design of planting blocks with pressurized irrigation
With the soil and climate data and the topography of the site, the optimal shape, size and layout of the blocks can be defined, taking into account the amount of grapes needed for each variety and the hydraulic requirements of the irrigation system to be installed. The working pressures and dimensions of each block are calculated, either by hand or with software, and the layout is then drawn up in a CAD system.
In the field
Once the land had been measured and the blocks laid out, the corners of each block were staked out on the ground with surveying instruments (a theodolite and an electronic distance meter), and the establishment work began.
Progress on the First Stage
The blocks have already been subsoiled, deep-plowed and harrowed to prepare the ground for the new vines. The planting grid was marked out with measured wires and wooden stakes, and the planting holes were then dug.
The main and lateral PVC irrigation pipes were installed according to the hydraulic design, the PE drip lines were laid out, and the emitters were placed where each vine would go.
We started planting during a spell of very hot weather; given the condition the plants arrived in, we could not wait for the heat to ease. In mid-July 2008 we began installing the end posts, which allowed us to string the support wire for the drip line and the cordon wire.
In the winery
For a few months, until I returned to Chile, I also served as the resident winemaker at the company’s winery in the Guadalupe Valley. I took over the winery at a critical time for the company, just as the previous winemaker was leaving. At that point there were many wines in inventory that had never been released for sale, for reasons I never fully understood.
Until I resigned, my main task was to take a full inventory of the wines at almost every stage of production, from those aging in barrels to those already bottled in the cellar. I corrected acidity and sulfur dioxide levels where needed and kept the aging barrels strictly topped up to minimize a series of microbiological problems that had been appearing for several years.
I then divided the wines into lots according to the following parameters:
- Variety
- Production area
- Potential
- Overall organoleptic quality
Once the lots were defined, I built a relational database to record the movements and chemical analyses of each lot and keep each one fully traceable. The long-term goal was to maintain tighter control over the wines produced and prevent a repeat of past problems.