Chardonnay, Sagemoor Vineyard by Brittany Komm

Bud break has begun in Washington’s Columbia Valley. Brittany Komm, vineyard operations manager at Sagemoor Vineyards, reports that bud break started in Chardonnay at Weinbau Vineyard on the Wahluke Slope on Friday April 4th.

Other appellations are seeing bud break as well. Dunham Cellars noted bud break at Kenny Hill Estate in Walla Walla Valley. Sadie Drury of North Slope Management also observed bud break in the southern section of Walla Walla Valley. Komm also noted bud break in Chardonnay at Sagemoor in the White Bluffs.

This year’s start of bud break aligns almost perfectly with averages since 2013, the beginning of Washington’s (generally) warmer years. The average date for bud break to commence since that time has been April 3rd. The median has been April 4th. (See a complete listing of growing season markers for Washington since 2013 here; see an explanation of the page here.)

As Michael Fagin recently wrote, temperatures since the beginning of the year have ranged from generally below average in the later part of February to average and above average since. Time will tell what the 2025 growing season brings.

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