Section 6 · November–January
The Freeze
What is left hanging, and the wait.
What is left on the wire in November is netted, watched and left alone. From then on the work is waiting for a temperature that has to be low and has to hold, and some winters it never arrives.
What these months decide
November–January| Month | In the vineyard | What it costs to get wrong | |
|---|---|---|---|
| November | What stays out is netted and watched | A loose net lifts in wind and freezes there | |
| December | The freeze watch; hanging fruit dehydrates | The cold comes close and never holds |
Entries in The Freeze
5 entries- Waiting for minus eightFruit left hanging into winter, netted and watched, until the temperature holds low enough for long enough.
- What hangs onBunch structure and skin thickness decide what survives to December.
- Pressing frozenThe fruit goes into the press still hard, and most of the water stays behind as ice.
- The night pickPicked in the dark because the temperature will not hold past dawn.
- The year it never cameWarm winters, and the crop left on the wire.