Douro Weather and Viti Updates

[Cynthia J]

I thought I would create a thread for regular posting of weather and viti news - the sorts of scraps of right now, just heard information which don't necessarily merit a blog post.

Feel free to ask questions, I will do my best to provide and/or find answers!

April so far has been a mixture of sun and overcast, the odd shower, a few very warm days and a lot of days which were comfortable to cool and all the warmth in the sun. Changeable. My daily notes include things like this, for the 7th: still cool, but sunny... False Alarm! Clouded over by 10:00 and overcast all day, then on the 8th noted as Sunny, clear(ing) and later amended WARM PERFECT DAY! You get the drift.

I visited Morgadio da Calçada last week (full story now on the blog http://www.fortheloveofport.com/2014/04 ... a-calcada/ ). When we arrived (to full glorious sun and warmth) from Porto and Manuel was catching up with his manager, Anita, she said there had been heavy rain and thunder showers on Tuesday (my notes from Gaia on Tuesday: Sunny) and when we went up the mountain to survey the area, there were still some standing puddles on the unpaved roadway. Friday morning we left the Douro in perfect weather - comfortable temperatures and warm full sun. Crossing the Marão we ran into thick fog and drizzle, and Porto was heavily overcast - not only all day Friday but Saturday as well which was distinctly chilly. Easter Sunday was sunny, comfortable and breezy, yesterday sunny and warm, today looks set for the same.

Several different people have told me the vines are off to the start of a normal, typical cycle. Budburst is lovely, possibly my favourite time in the Douro.

[Andy Velebil]

Thanks for the update!

[Roy Hersh]

+1

[Cynthia J]

The past week has been ... variable, to be polite.
Tuesday evening (22nd April) we had showers overnight but Wednesday 23rd was sunny and nice
Thursday I woke to the rumble of thunder (no, not my stomach) and we had thunder showers off and on with the odd moment of blinding sunlight
Friday was clear and mostly sunny and warm
Saturday again it rained overnight (Fri/Sat overnight) and it continued drizzly till mid day - after lunch it cleared to be sunny but distinctly cool
Sunday 27th, sunny and perfect
Monday... Not. Mizzley and overcast in the morning, though it cleared by mid late afternoon
Tuesday, the same
Today, Wed 30th, overnight showers cleared off to leave it overcast and breezy, the sun is warm when it comes through now and again for a few minutes, but the air is not.

Up in the Douro, they had a bit of rain early in the month - more or less 20 mm of rain over the first 5 days of the month, both Cima Corgo and Douro Superior. Then dry until last week - Thurs, Fri, Sat, 24, 25, 26th April there was a bit of rain - this time 10 mm ish in Cima Corgo, dwindling to just a few mm out in the Douro Superior.

But decidedly cool out there - even in Douro Superior, average temperatures have been barely 20ºC (68ºF) at most. Mid-month the highs touched 30ºC (86ºF) but nights continued cool, dropping to 10ºC or less, and the first and last thirds of the month, only mid teens to 20º ish for highs.

So, no irrational exuberance for vine growth, just slow and steady.

[Roy Hersh]

Thank you for the update, Cynthia. Sounds like those packing for trips to Porto have challenges on their hands!

May I ask you what does "Mizzley" mean?

[Andy Velebil]

Thank you for the update, Cynthia. Sounds like those packing for trips to Porto have challenges on their hands!

?

Yes, like bring your shorts and flip flops and your winter gear too

[Cynthia J]

May I ask you what does "Mizzley" mean?

Mist + drizzle + misery .... something along those lines. Soggy but not a good honest soaking.

Andy... yes, I was in town the other morning and noticed a lot of tourists - sunburnt and peeling but bundled up in fleeces. But if the vines are thriving, I can live with it, personally.

[Glenn E.]

May I ask you what does "Mizzley" mean?

Mist + drizzle + misery .... something along those lines. Soggy but not a good honest soaking.

So basically any normal day in Seattle.

[Cynthia J]

oooh, sorry about Seattle, Glenn.

On the other hand yesterday and today were/are gloriously sunny, warm, dry, perfect...

10 day forecast up in Douro is for mostly sunny days high temps in low 20s

[Glenn E.]

oooh, sorry about Seattle, Glenn.

On the other hand yesterday and today were/are gloriously sunny, warm, dry, perfect...

Actually Seattle has been very nice this week, too. My car said it was 90 degrees (~32 C) yesterday, which is quite warm for around here. It's supposed to cool off a bit today but still be sunny.

But we're still lacking that fantastic Douro terroir! :)

[Cynthia J]

Sorry to have fallen quiet ... the days are slipping by - though still cool for the time of year and very breezy. The first week of May, up to around the 8th, were overcast mornings which more or less cleared in the afternoons maybe, very cool. Since then, we have had crystal clear cloudless days, though still a bit cool for the time of year, and some days very very breezy. Still, the tourists on the streets of Porto are uniformly sunburnt and apparently perfectly happy with the weather now.

Friends sent me a link to a video from Sic Noticias - a show called Imagens de Marca - around 2 minutes into the video is a less than two minute clip where they visit a Douro wine producer called Douro Prime, and the film was shot 2nd May in the Douro Superior. You can see - clear blue skies, healthy vines doing nicely, and the viticultural team working on the despampa - the removal of excess shoots from the vine. The vineyard scenes are only about a minute, but it's a nice peek.

And it is followed by a visit to a producer of Alheiras de MIrandela - smoked sausages, in this case a combination of chicken and pork. Cute footage of Bísaro pigs!

http://videos.sapo.pt/ItCIm2g89uHhae2H3qdN

[Cynthia J]

More news, from a viticultural contact in the Douro Superior:

May so far has been dry - a few drops of rain on the 4th, but nothing significant. Temperatures are getting up to 30ºs C in the day, but the nights are unseasonably cool.

The development of the vines is probably 10 days ahead of normal - the vines put on a bit of a growth spurt, given temperatures, sun and that good soggy winter putting lots of water back into the deep soil. Normally they do one pass through the vineyards for the despampa (removing excess shoots) when the vines re 10 to 20 cm, and later when the vines are a meter or more they pass through again to tuck the vines up in between the wires of the trellis. This year, with the sudden growth spurt, a lot of people are doing both these tasks in one pass through the vineyard.

The flowering has gone well, the vines and young cachos, the infant grape clusters, are looking healthy and plentiful.

There has been little or no míldio in the Douro Superior and Cima Corgo, but the Baixo Corgo has had some trouble with this.

[Andy Velebil]

Thanks for the update. Given how much rain fell over winter I was wondering how that would affect mildew issues when it gets warmer? Are farmers concerned about that?

[Cynthia J]

Hi Andy, actually, it's not the rainfall over the winter, it's the levels of humidity in the spring when it warms up that sets the mildio proliferating. This year it seems that when it was damp, it was cool (minimising risk), now it is warmer, it is dry (minimising risk) - my contact yesterday was clearly thrilled to report there had been no problems so far, and unless we get a soggy spell again, does not seem to anticipate trouble. He is based in Douro Superior but keeps up on conditions across the region of course.

Next week I should be visiting a producer in the Baixo Corgo - waiting to confirm the date - and I will be interested to see what that person reports.

That said the 10 day forecast shows some rain the middle to end of next week with daytime temps dropping to low-mid teens!!

[Andy Velebil]

Hi Andy, actually, it's not the rainfall over the winter, it's the levels of humidity in the spring when it warms up that sets the mildio proliferating.

I realize that, but I may not have phrased my question correctly.... Was curious with so much rain that super saturated everything over winter and the early months of this year I was curious when the heat level starts rising would that cause the ground water to evaporate and cause more than normal humid conditions? Does that make better sense?

[Cynthia J]

Oops, got it! I understand what you are getting at now. Given that my contact in the Douro was quite clear that they have had no mildio in Douro Superior and Cima Corgo, I am guessing not. My guess is, the winter rain has soaked in deep enough to the poor old parched earth that this was not an issue. But now I am curious too, and when I am up river next week I will try to learn more about this aspect of conditions this year. Thanks Andy!

[Andy Velebil]

Oops, got it! I understand what you are getting at now. Given that my contact in the Douro was quite clear that they have had no mildio in Douro Superior and Cima Corgo, I am guessing not. My guess is, the winter rain has soaked in deep enough to the poor old parched earth that this was not an issue. But now I am curious too, and when I am up river next week I will try to learn more about this aspect of conditions this year. Thanks Andy!

Thanks, look forward to hearing what they have to say.

[Bradley Bogdan]

Oops, got it! I understand what you are getting at now. Given that my contact in the Douro was quite clear that they have had no mildio in Douro Superior and Cima Corgo, I am guessing not. My guess is, the winter rain has soaked in deep enough to the poor old parched earth that this was not an issue. But now I am curious too, and when I am up river next week I will try to learn more about this aspect of conditions this year. Thanks Andy!

Thanks, look forward to hearing what they have to say.

+1!


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[Cynthia J]

Well... bummer! The rain arrived today, we are "enjoying" showers and cool temperatures here in Gaia today, and forecast says this will continue through Friday. Am waiting to hear from Douro contact about what's happening up there, though often he doesn't get my messages till end of day. Brrrrrrrrrrrr

[Cynthia J]

For four days - Monday 19th through Thursay 22nd May - we had a mixture of showers, some quite heavy, and occasional sun here in Gaia. Up in the Douro there were some showers, but nothing significant, I was told. Friday, Saturday and today, Sunday, have all been brilliantly sunny and beautiful, but cool.

I spoke with a friend who spent last night in the Cima Corgo who tells me it was down to 9ºC (48ºF) last night, they were freezing in their beds!