Note: Shortly after publication, Meghan Zobeck was announced as the new winemaker at Napa's Opus One.
There are few things as photogenic as a well-cared-for Napa vineyard in peak Mustard Season, when the vine rows erupt in a brilliant carpet of yellow mustard flowers in full bloom. But there’s a lot more to those cover crops than just roadside photo-ops.
There’s actually a lot going on under those beautiful mustard blooms, in a process that plays a major role in a vineyard’s health. Whether its purpose is to improve soil aeration and enhance microbial activity and drainage or to prevent the erosion of fragile soils, the goals and methods of cover crop management can vary widely from one vineyard parcel to the next. The relevant variables range not just from which types of cover crop to grow and why but also change from valley floor to hillside and from tilling to mowing to crimping (flattening with a roller-crimper). It all matters: One size does not fit all when it comes to cover crop.
Follow along with me in the vineyard at Napa’s Burgess Cellars with winemaker Meghan Zobeck as she helps us scratch the surface of this fascinating topic. We start in Les Abeilles Vineyard in St. Helena, where Zobeck began experimenting with cover crop, followed by stops in the Quartz Creek Vineyard in Oak Knoll and then the Sorenson Vineyard on the slopes of the original Burgess estate.
Read more of James Molesworth's Winery Intels, hear his interviews with leading winemakers on Wine Spectator's Straight Talk podcast, and follow him on Instagram at @jmolesworth1.
