The beginning of this winter was the start of a great time for “diamond” hunters at Six Sigma Ranch. The generous supply of rain washed away the red volcanic dirt from the Lake County diamonds in the Diamond Mine Vineyard, leaving the sparkling nuggets right at your feet, begging to be picked up. (We gathered a few for the photo). There was one small catch, though – most days, it was too wet to drive even the off-road Pinzgauer up to the vineyard, so visitors had to put on rainboots and hike the two-mile road to fetch their loot.
The first sight that met the eye when approaching the vineyard was a surprise. “What on earth is that?” one hiker asked when she saw the black piles in Christian’s Vineyard on a foggy winter day. And that is exactly what it was – earth or, more specifically, organic compost, waiting for a dry day so vineyard manager Oscar Martinez could spread it out between the vine rows. The compost provides the vines with all the nutrients they need to start growing when they wake up from dormancy in the spring.
Until mid-December, one more surprise was waiting in the vineyard. When the vines dropped their leaves, they revealed a few missed clusters of incredibly sweet and aromatic grapes.
The 2025 growing season is right around the corner, but before the vines start budding out and unfurling tiny leaves, one more major vineyard task must be done: pruning. Crews of fast-working, highly skilled vineyard workers will move through the rows, trimming back last year’s sprawling growth and leaving tidy vines behind them, with exactly the right number of buds for the 2025 vintage.
Whether your passion is wine, meat, or nature, we invite you to come on out and enjoy this amazing place with us!