Tag: viticulture

Byline Brag: Green to Its Roots via Somm Journal

What does sustainability even mean anymore? “It’s a broad term, isn’t it?” says Leslie Frank, cofounder of Frank Family Vineyards. “You’re hard pressed to find any landowner, vintner, or anyone in the wine industry who’s not ‘sustainable.’” But for Leslie and her husband Richard Frank, owning Napa’s third-oldest winery (and nationally registered historic landmark), stewarding over 380 acres of vineyard property, and crafting notable premium Napa wines “that spans from sparkling to Cabernet and everything in between,” means they continuously seek to improve business practices in an effort to better the life forces both below and above ground, within their local community and throughout the wine industry at large. “It’s our earth-to-bottle, green-to-our-roots philosophy,” says Leslie.

Somm Journal April/May Cover
Somm Journal April/May Cover

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DipWSET Theory: Flowering and Fruit Set

Yo. Don’t ask why yo. Just yo. Yo—I gotta study for my WSET Diploma (D1) exam. One thing that really helped me pass my Level 3 exam was writing posts that simulated questions I could expect to see on the exam. So, that’s what the next (several) posts will be. Interspersed with wine notes (probably). My first exam is in one month. On my birthday no less. So…help me study? Thanks.

Let’s start with grape development…

[Information based on DipWSET D1 material]

The calyptra is shed and pollen is transferred from the anthers to the stigma fertilizing the flower.
The calyptra is shed and pollen is transferred from the anthers to the stigma fertilizing the flower.

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