One of the dependable aspects of farming is its consistent annual cycles. Every year in late November or early December after the first frost, we begin pruning the grapevines. The vineyard crew heads out in the early morning hours to take on the daunting task of pruning 96 acres. This will take all seven guys roughly four months, perhaps longer if the weather is uncooperative. When pruning a vine, they have numerous decisions to make and a number of considerations to keep in mind. Pruning helps to determine the crop load for the coming Harvest. 

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Choosing wine from a restaurant list can be hard and intimidating! We asked our friend and favorite sommelier Alexis Iaconis if she might have some tips about how to do that. Currently, Alexis is the Wine Director at Barndiva in Healdsburg and a sommelier at The Restaurant at Meadowood in Napa Valley. She is also studying for the Master Sommelier exam, so needless to say, she knows a thing or two about restaurant wine lists. Here she shares three tips on selecting a wine while dining out. 

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"Meet the Team" is our blog series that introduces each of the Hafner Vineyard team members. We answer a series of questions about ourselves and our time at Hafner Vineyard. Antonio Ordaz is part of the vineyard team, specializing in tractor driving. He and his family live here on the ranch. His bountiful garden produces chiles, tomatoes and much more. A chef at heart, he uses his homegrown vegetables for dinners with family and friends. The deal with his wife though... he cooks and she cleans! On the blog, Antonio also shares one of his fears when driving tractors... spiders! 

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"Meet the Team" is our blog series that introduces each of the Hafner Vineyard team members. We answer a series of questions about ourselves and our time at Hafner Vineyard. I have been our winemaker since we began making wine in 1982. Here I share stories from the early years including a power outage in the middle of harvest and how I learned to drive on the ranch. Something you might not know... I am an Eagle Scout. Read more to see which is my favorite wine and why!

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The Holidays are always an exciting time for us here at the winery. Orders fill our mailbox. Emails with gift requests stream in through the computers. The phone begins to ring constantly. It’s fun for us to help patrons select the perfect gifts for family, friends and colleagues. Through the excitement of the Holiday Season, we often discuss with each other which gift we would give (or want to receive!). We thought it would be fun to share which are our favorites and why. And we couldn't resist including which gift of wine we would want to unwrap. 

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