Vertical or horizontal?

Horizontal rows at Storybook Mountain, Calistoga, Napa Valley

Have you ever wondered why some hillside vineyards have horizontal rows while others have vertical rows?

Working at Arcadian's tasting room today, I got into a discussion with guests about the varying exposures of slopes in vineyards and the possible influences on the resulting wines. The conversation eventually led to me being asked about the reasoning for horizontal or vertical rows on the slopes.

It was one of those moments... you've learned it before and you're aware of the answer. However it's something you don't think about everyday so the brain put the breaks on verbalizing an answer. Otherwise known as your mind going blank. My answer was based around vertical and horizontal rows offering different sun exposure to the vines; and also the possibility of the direction of the rows affecting the overall use of the land. My answers were correct in a very general sense, but I didn't feel on top of my game in giving the answer.

So to be more exact, the reasoning can be based on factors relating to the land, ability to work the land, exposure to the sun, and even to reasons related to culture and tradition. In general -- horizontal rows are easier to work, either by hand or by machine. A steep vineyard would require horizontal terraced rows just to be able to be tended. It would also require the horizontal rows to help in maintaining the structure of the soil. Conversely, vertical rows may increase exposure to the sun. This may be important in a cooler growing area where the grapes may need the extra sunlight to reach the desired ripeness. I live near the cool-climate Sta. Rita Hills AVA in Santa Barbara County and drive through the AVA a few times each week. The hillside vineyard blocks here are predominately planted in vertical rows, thus prompting the question from the guest.

Wine is such a humbling subject. There's so much information and knowledge, you're always just a question away from having you're mind go fuzzy on you. I wrote this post to clarify my thoughts on the matter... any further thoughts or clarifications are welcome!

Vertical rows in Sta. Rita Hills