Many times I have read about hailstorms causing havoc in Bordeaux. Now I truly feel their pain. A week ago we got a freak hail storm and it did a number on the garden and vineyard. It literally shredded leaves on the vines, knocked entire clusters of grapes off the vines, and punctured dozens of grapes on other clusters. In all, it looks like a loss of at least 10% of my already meagre crop. :-( Farming sucks!
Over the weekend we netted the vines since the grapes have started changing color.
Veraison is the term for this metamorphosis, and the result is that it attracts the attention of the birds. We don't want that! So time to net and protect the crop I have left!
-Jacques
