…like a jack rabbit in the wind
Winter 2023 has been all about the wind. Not particularly surprising since West Texas is considered the windiest place in all of America. Indeed, the vineyards around Lubbock Texas experience an average wind around 30 mph, often gusting up to 60 mph, starting in the dead of winter, just as pruning gets underway. To fight the biting cold our pruners dress like they are hitting the slopes: thermal overalls, klondike hats, gloves and scarves. Even the most dedicated among them just have to call it in some days. This west texas panhandle, high plains area is not at all unlike the oldest wine regions in Provence France with their legendary winter wind, “Le Mistral “. Locals like to say their wind can blow the ears off a mule. Though strong winds can make pruning season a real challenge, It’s not a bad thing. Dry wind helps control fungus and leaves behind a long string of hot sunny days that are essential for our quality grapes.
As long as we are talking about the wind, we might as well say a few words about the sand and dust. Items dropped in the field can vanish under the sand within hours, you can find yourself in the middle of the rows, hunkering down, as Lyndon B Johnson put it, like a jack rabbit in a dust storm. Dust storms, or more appropriatley West Texas Haboobs, can come upon you quite suddenly, leaving you with a mouthful of grit, and having blown through every tiny crack in the vineyard cabin, an inch of dust in our bedsheets.
