Catoctin Breeze Vineyard

06/01/2026

We go through great lengths to avoid using herbicide in our vineyard. Hand weeding is not efficient from a time perspective, but it works.

Weeds will suffocate the plants and compete for water. Keeping them under control is always a challenge. This block of 3 year old Cabernet is too fragile for mechanization via our under-vine mower. So we resort to old school tactics.

Our crew is 💪

05/19/2026

We are proud to be herbicide free.

No glyphosate. No glufosinate.

There are many reasons why, but this video demos “the how”.

05/14/2026

05/13/2026

🪶 Onwards.

The impacts of the April 21st frost will be felt for the remainder of the growing season. Mostly in the form of extra work for less fruit. That’s generally the game mother nature likes to play. When she gives you perfect growing conditions, the vineyard requires less labor, and the quality of fruit is inherently better. In a difficult year, you must work twice as hard to obtain the same quality, if you’re lucky.

I’m still optimistic about producing a Concerto in 2026. Mainly because our Cabernet Sauvignon was not impacted by the frost (pictured is 4 year old Cab Sauvignon vines). The hill protected most of it from the cold air, and late pruning also helped delay bud break just enough for it to hold back until it was safe to emerge. I only wish we had more of it.

I am a bit concerned with Cabernet Franc, as we did see some frost damage there. We lost on average 2 out of 8 fruitful “primary” shoots per vine. Not as much as I previously thought. If all 8 shoots survived the frost, we would remove (shoot thin) all other green growth to keep the vine balanced and aerated. But, they didn’t all survive, we lost 2 of 8, and they must be replaced somehow.

To continue reading, click the link to our website: https://www.catoctinbreeze.com/thequill/onwards

04/22/2026

🪶Resilience

We lost roughly 50% of this year’s crop this morning in just a span of a few hours due to frost.

As I approached the vineyard this morning, instead of seeing beautiful and brilliant hues of green illuminated by the sun, I see dull shades of grey and brown, and upturned leaves. Wilted shoots showing no signs of life. A million thoughts raced through my head. What the heck do I do? Will there be any wine to make this harvest? All these fancy concrete tanks to fill with…what exactly? It was a stark reminder that we are not in charge, and that farming can be heartbreaking.

Albariño is totally fried. Zero for this year. Half of Cabernet Franc is gone. Fortunately, Cabernet Sauvignon should be OK since it’s a bit behind the others as far bud break is concerned. In the 16 years of being around this vineyard, I’ve never seen anything like this before.

However, I quickly realized that today wasn’t about loss. It was about the resilience of my team, and all of my winegrowing friends in the DMV who had a day that was equally as devasting as mine. As I spoke to my team and a number of growers in the area, we briefly grieved with one another, but then our conversations quickly turned to jokes knowing that this is what we signed up for. We take the good with the bad – you can’t cherry pick what you like or don’t like about growing wine. You just grow wine. Or in some cases in 2026, you grow a little bit of it. We experienced the joys of picture perfect ripening conditions in 2025, but then the pendulum swings and we feel the burn of losing 50% of our crop in the spring of 2026. We keep marching forward because our love for this life as a winegrower is unconditional.

The 2026 vintage might be small in volume, but we’ll do our best to keep it big in character. We will only be making wine from the most resilient vines this year. That is something to look forward to, and something we’ll be proud of sharing with you all once the time comes.

Adam

04/16/2026

🪶 What is our DNA?

Bud break is officially here. The promise of a new vintage lies ahead. As we see the 10 acres come to life, I can’t help but think of the past five years that led up to today.

In 2021 I had the vision of expanding the vineyard from 3 acres to 10. Having a good soil/vine relationship is key to growing fine wine. So, I decided to consult with a geologist to help me choose which varieties to plant, and where to plant them. We have three distinct soils types at Catoctin, plus various aspects, and slopes. What to do?

**read the rest in “The Quill” blog. Link below**

https://www.catoctinbreeze.com/thequill/dna