March 24, 2010
Wasn’t that a glorious week we had? The snow melted, revealing the messiest spring lawn we’ve had to date, but wheelbarrow loads of sticks, pine cones and debris provided a great excuse to be outside. Crocuses are starting to poke through the gray-brown grass; daffodils and Forsythia won’t be far behind. Mud season is well underway. Here in Green River, we have the best road crew in the state– Dickie, Allen and company, wow! One minute we are dipping in and out of mud moguls, the next time we are on the road, it has recently been graded and new gravel laid where the moguls will inevitably reappear. We received our first batch of 2010 maple syrup. Spring has arrived in Vermont.
In the wine world, spring is also a time of cleaning up and rejuvenation. Vines are pruned, trellises repaired, and new vines planted. Biodynamically-farmed vineyards come to life after the spring equinox, the first day of spring when the hours of light are equal to the hours of darkness. The cow horn filled with dung and buried at the fall equinox is dug up and the contents, after “dynamization,” are spread on the vineyards’ soils.
From a retailer’s perspective, spring means lots of industry tastings featuring new releases of spring and summer wines. On Monday, we enjoyed our first preview of 2009 rosés. The new vintage of Picpoul arrives in the shop this week, with the new vintage of Vinho Verde not far behind. Signs of spring are everywhere!
-Marty Ramsburg