As we enter into the later part of March, we will begin to see some of our wine grapes being harvested. The first harvest will likely occur in Mendoza, followed by Curico Valley Chile. M&M opted to not get grapes out of the Colchagua this season as a result of issues we anticipated with the timing of the harvest. This timing issue may have been a combination of factors including frost damage that occurred in the spring, resulting in a much smaller crop in that area, and warm weather. M&M will look into obtaining grapes from the Colchagua region for the 2015 season.

We regularly get questions asking how the growing season was for both Argentina and Chile. Chile had a spring frost that resulted in some significant crop damage in certain areas and affecting specific varieties, most notably Chardonnay. That said, not all vineyards were affected and some economic projects for the wine grape crop are remain favorable.

Other than stated above, there really hasn’t been much in the way of notable news from these areas. As it pertains to wine grapes, no news is, in this case, good news.

We will of course keep a watchful eye out for transportation issues, which we have seen on occasion coming out of Chile.

M&M is looking forward to the 2014 Chilean and Argentinean wine grape arrival and there is still time to obtain red varieties like Carmenere, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Syrah and Pinot Noir. There will be white varietals available too including Chardonnay, Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc, and Pinot Grigio. Two varieties, Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon, will be available from Mendoza and supply is limited.