Week Ending 2025-01-05

Our vines at La Reina de Santa Lucia are fully dormant after the 2024 harvest season, which finished on a typical schedule in September. Cluster counts were 10–20% below average, with fruit especially juicy and concentrated. The harvest season was warm overall, but without any extended or damaging heat events, and conditions stayed steady throughout.
Post-harvest weather in late 2024 remained cooperative. No significant rain events were recorded during or immediately after harvest, reducing disease pressure and allowing for efficient fieldwork. As dormancy set in, rainfall continued to lag, with no measurable precipitation for the first week of January 2025 and only limited rainfall in the final weeks of 2024. This leaves soil moisture below ideal for early winter, a detail many growers will be tracking as the season progresses. Warm or dry spells during dormancy can lead to uneven bud break or stress, but recent temperatures have stayed seasonable, with weekly highs averaging 63.6°F and lows at 43.0°F.

Peak wind speeds this week averaged 8.4 mph, with a maximum hourly gust of 10.0 mph. Average soil temperature was 51.3°F. Evapotranspiration demand was minimal, at just 0.28 inches for the week.

In summary, the 2025 vintage enters winter after the 2024 harvest of solid fruit quality, but current dormant conditions remain drier than ideal. As the region waits for more winter storms to recharge soil profiles, attention will stay on rainfall totals and the potential for any midwinter heat spikes that could disrupt vine rest. For now, the vineyards remain on a typical winter track, with all eyes on the weather as the new year begins.