Lots happening while I was away.

The first flowers in the vines were in the last days of May (see image (right) in Volnay Les Angles taken 29th May, courtesy Nicolas Rossignol) a little precocious, and some way ahead of the average for the Côte d’Or. But then, of-course, there was the weather. Storms with occasional hail, lots and lots of rain plus cooler temperatures – literally putting a dampener on things…

The storms (and hail) will have affected only some of the earliest flowering vines – so not too much damage – the cool weather has retarded the flowering a little, but the rain is clearly problematic – not to mention swamp-like conditions making spraying ‘difficult’. Coulure is a likely result of the current weather – in tandem there would be yield reductions.

We’ll have a better view by the end of the month when (hopefully) the clouds have cleared.