Field of Dreams – The Birth of our New Vineyard

12 Jun Field of Dreams – The Birth of our New Vineyard

This beautiful slab of limestone was unearthed during tiling

Step 1: Acquisition

Heart & Hands began with a dream of finding the ideal site for growing Pinot Noir in the Finger Lakes.  For us, this meant finding a vineyard site situated on limestone bedrock, in near proximity to the lake, near a scenic byway.  In 2007, we found and acquired 7 acres of this land on Cayuga Lake, and we began the years-long process of developing the winery and vineyard into what is is today.

We were hopeful that as demand for our wines grew, we would need to expand the size of our vineyard plantings, either with our growers, or by locating additional acreage nearby.  Susan led discussions with nearby property owners to see if there was any interest in selling land.  Fortunately, in January of 2017, we acquired the land just to the north of our existing estate vineyard.

The latest purchase of land is optimal for us for several reasons.  First, because it is adjacent to our existing property, it has the same geology and soils as our existing vineyard (Onondaga limestone) which has demonstrated to provide an exceptional foundation for the new vines and wine.  Next, the land slopes gently towards the lake, which will provide good air drainage and allow the vines to have excellent exposure to the afternoon sun from the west.  Finally, its proximity to our estate means that we do not have to travel a significant distance to farm the land, which will make vineyard management more efficient.

Step 2: Planning and Working the Future Vineyard Land

Over the past year and a half, we made plans to develop the vineyard.  In December of 2017, Tom selected the vines and rootstocks to be planted on the new vineyard.   He then created a blueprint for the layout of the future vineyard which calls for the addition of nearly 7 new acres of vines.  The new plantings will not only allow us to make more wine, but will also provide the opportunity to further explore the impact of our terroir on the grapes and the corresponding wines they produce.

Over the last few weeks, we took the one of the first steps to convert our field of dreams to a vineyard:  putting in drainage tile.  So what exactly is drainage tile, and why do we need it in the vineyard before vines are planted?   A tile drainage system is a network of perforated pipes which we install beneath the ground to remove excess water in the soil.  If excess water is allowed to remain in a vineyard, vine root growth and function can be impaired and can harm the long-term productivity of the vineyard.  By installing tile at appropriate intervals for our vineyard, we establish the best possible environment for the vines, and ensure that the amount of water is balanced and doesn’t exceed what the vines can handle.

Tom collaborated with the tile installer to custom-design the tile system for our vineyard.  During the design process, they considered the types of vines and rootstock which will be planted, and the land’s the soil type, geology, and topography.   The tile installer used GPS technology to map the entire parcel of land so that we could understand how water moves on our site.   The resulting design specified exactly where each tile line should be placed, along with the appropriate depth and slope for each tile line.

After design completion, we moved on to the installation phase.  Because of the amount of limestone on our property, the crew decided to install each line two passes.  On the first pass, they ripped through the soil, located any large limestone boulders or formations, and moved them out of the way.  On the second pass, they installed the tile using GPS to precisely position the tile in the right location, and at the right slope.   The work progressed without too many interruptions, other than finding giant slabs of limestone embedded in the soil!

The following photos show some aspects of the tiling activities, from the first day of tiling to the end state:  a completely tiled future vineyard.  We look forward to sharing more updates as we take the next steps to prepare the land for the vines.

Day 1 of Tiling: The first tile lines run on the East side of the property overlooking Cayuga Lake

Tom stands on the Tile Tiger – GPS driven equipment designed to dig deep and presicely place tile

Chunks of limestone hide beneath the surface of the land

The future vineyard overlooking Cayuga Lake after the completion of tiling

Looking back on the existing vineyard from the newly tiled land