While the old Zinfandel vineyard survived that dark period of our country’s history between 1920 and 1933 called Prohibition, I began to wonder if those same old vines would be singing that song popular during their teenage years, albeit for a different reason. As the first half of winter slunk along with scant rainfall, it appeared that we had suddenly been transported to a foreign place. My sister, Louise sent me a picture of the old Zinfandel vineyard after pruning with the caption ‘this is what farming in the desert must be like.’ There was no cover crop where typically the grass would be lush….. Only bare earth and gnarled vines set below a pure blue sky. Fortunately, the storm door opened up at last and it looks as though we will receive enough water to ensure the old, unirrigated vines will have enough moisture to make it through another season.
I remember the 1976 and 1977 ‘drought’ seasons about as well as a teenager could. The crops were naturally small and everything ripened early and rapidly. I’ll never forget the intensity of flavor in the Zinfandel grapes, though. If this is what we look forward to in 2014, I say ‘bring it on.’
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