By Mark Clarin of McGrail Vineyards Winemaker, Mark Clarin, shares an insiders view of the 2022 Grape Harvest in the Livermore Valley! Mark’s Memoir The 2022 vintage has been a classically different vintage from the other 43 I have lived through. I had hopes in January and the preceding December of having a decent rainfall […]
2022: A tale of Two Harvest from Winemaker Mark Clarin Read More »
By Mark Clarin of McGrail Vineyards & Winery December Vineyard Updates Autumn is a time to reflect and to give back. The leaves of the vine give back their carbohydrates to the vine to be stored in the root system for the winter. It is a very important piece in the cycle of life for
December Vineyard Updates 2020 Read More »
By Mark Clarin of McGrail Vineyards Because of the local fires in August, I decided to try to understand the potential for smoke taint in our vineyards. After researching the potential for smoke taint, we followed the recommendations from ETS Laboratories. ETS is the West Coast’s most respected wine lab and since they are based
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By Mark Clarin of McGrail Vineyards 2020 has been an interesting year. The growing season has been ideal, beginning with decent rainfall in the winter. We had a warm spring with good conditions during bloom and fruit set. The summer was warm until about the end of August, when the temperatures climbed into the triple
October Harvest Updates 2020 Read More »
By Mark Clarin and Laina Carter of McGrail Vineyards Autumn is just around the corner, but in the vineyard a new season has already begun! Harvest has started here at McGrail Vineyards and we want to share this new chapter with you. We asked Winemaker Mark Clarin to share his thoughts on our 2020 vintage
A New Season: Harvest 2020 Read More »
By Mark Clarin of McGrail Vineyards & Winery As we continue with our new shelter in place conditions in this country, there are a few fine folks who are working to ensure the 2020 vintage, and vintages beyond, will be spectacular. We recently removed about three acres of our estate Cabernet Sauvignon and put the
By Mark Clarin, Heather McGrail, and Laina Carter of McGrail Vineyards If you’ve ever been to a McGrail Vineyards Release Party or Barrel Tasting Weekend at McGrail, you’ve likely spoken to or seen Mark Clarin. You’ve probably even seen him jamming downtown, at other wineries, or local breweries, in one of the various bands he
Qs and As with Our Winemaker, Mark Clarin Read More »
By Laina Carter and Mark Clarin of McGrail Vineyards February was an incredibly busy month in the vineyards, but unseasonably so, as our vines are currently dormant and February tends to be a pretty uneventful month for our vineyards. There are countless facets to grape growing and external factors affecting grapevines that no year and
FEBRUARY 2020: Vineyard Dormancy, Maintenance, & Weather Read More »
By Mark Clarin of McGrail Vineyards The Importance of Pruning It’s that time of year again in the vineyard, when we prune last year’s growth back to the cordon. Our vineyards are currently pruned to two bud spur positions. These positions are kept approximately a fist apart along the cordon in order to keep the
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By Laina Carter of McGrail Vineyards & Winery This Friday, January 17th, 2020, at precisely 12AM, marks 100 years since the Volstead Act was put into effect, making it illegal for the American people to produce, sell, or transport alcoholic beverages. Coincidentally, this date has been named “National Bootlegger’s Day,” but primarily due to the
100 Years Since the Volstead Act in the Livermore Valley Read More »
