Napa Valley soil and weather reports serve as baseline data for climate change and soil carbon sequestration in vineyard lands
Napa Valley soil and weather reports serve as baseline data for climate change and soil carbon sequestration in vineyard lands
Paul Skinner, Ph.D., soil scientist and proprietor of Terra Spase, Inc., in Napa Valley, has announced that a subset of weather data contained in his Weather and Wine Grapes in the Napa Valley AVA report has been purchased for use by climate scientists at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, CA. The data set will be used to refine climate models to take into account the marine layer influence on grape growing in California’s north coast premium wine-grape growing regions. A detailed description of the influence of the marine layer on grape growing is contained within this Terra Spase report.
Skinner also announced the continued availability of soil carbon data contained within his Soils and Wine Grapes in the Napa Valley AVA report. The Napa soils report contains soil carbon content maps for the entire Napa Valley AVA as well as for each individual appellation within the AVA. In addition, soil carbon content maps are also available on a county and appellation basis for Lake and MendocinoCounty appellations. The use of soil organic matter and carbon content data is important for determining the potential for carbon sequestration of atmospheric CO2 in agricultural lands. This carbon sequestration potential will be useful in reducing carbon emissions and in calculating offsets used in a cap and trade system.
Paul Skinner, Ph.D., is an expert on Napa and Sonoma soil types and how they influence premium quality vineyards and wines. Paul has also worked extensively in the San JoaquinValley and Central and Southern coastal regions of CA. His firm Terra Spase, Inc. helps vineyard and winery owners understand their vineyards better through a unique combination of soil, climate, remote sensing, and spatial data analysis techniques. Paul also produces his own wines under the Sequum label.
Weather and Wine Grapes in the Napa Valley AVA (183 pages with 93 original color soil maps) sells for $100 a copy; Soils and Wine Grapes in the Napa Valley (233 pages with 137 color maps) sells for $200 a copy. If ordered together, the combined price is $250. “The books are a valuable resource for vineyard owners, winery owners, vineyard managers, winemakers, winery general managers, and those concerned with the possibilities of climate change,” Paul Skinner explains.
The books can be ordered directly from Terra Spase at the upcoming Unified Grape and Wine Symposium in Sacramento, CA Jan 26-29 at booth #1124, or by contacting Terra Spase at 707/967-8325, http://www.terraspase.com or Paul Skinner at paulsts@earthlink.net.
Weather and Wine Grapes in the Napa Valley AVA provides detailed descriptions of the 14 different NapaValley appellations and the weather that has occurred within the Napa Valley AVA from 1996 to 2002. The report also combines weather data in the growing, harvest, and dormant seasons with information on grapevine growth and production for different grape varietals grown within the NapaValley. Individual color maps of maximum and minimum temperature, precipitation, growing degree-days, and disease risk within the Napa Valley AVA are also presented. "This report contains detailed descriptions and analysis on the weather in all 14 NapaValley appellations and summarizes the effects recent weather has had on grape growing in this area," Paul Skinner explains. “This report may serve as baseline data for grape growers, winemakers, and vineyard owners for long term planning and for adjusting viticultural practices in accordance with the historical data on weather in the NapaValley as we move forward into the future with the uncertainties of climate change."
Soils and Wine Grapes in the Napa Valley is the first comprehensive report on the soils of the NapaValley and their influence on wine grape production. It provides a detailed description of the 14 different appellations and the 33 different soil series that occur within the Napa Valley AVA. Individual color maps of soil series distribution, depth to bedrock, drainage class, base line fertility, and hydrologic groupings are included for each of the approved appellations in the Napa Valley AVA. Soils and Wine Grapes in the Napa Valley AVA combines data on soil series distribution, profile characteristics and vigor potential with information on grapevine growth and production for the many different wine grape varietals grown in the Napa Valley.