Glen L Creasy

A common problem here in the Languedoc - abandoned vineyards next to producing ones... With the recent incentives to pull out unwanted blocks, there's less of this, but there are still a lot of examples around...

#Languedoc #Vineyard

Visit to Noilly Prat, vermouth producer in Marseillan. Fascinating history and process for making the beverage. Pictured here are barrels kept outside where some of the fortified (16%) wine is stored for a year, without topping. This is to simulate ship transport (part of this is that salt from the Mediterranean Sea makes its way to the barrels). In hot weather they are sprayed with water to keep the wood from drying out.

#Languedoc #Vermouth #BarrelAge

My oenologist wife, Kirsten, and I are hosting a two week school for Bordeaux Sciences Agro Bachelor in V&O students. Here we are introducing them to the wines and wine regions of the Languedoc! #Languedoc #BordeauxSciences #Teaching #WineTasting #LanguedocWine

Unusually warm weather for the time of year throughout France - though, unfortunately, it won't be as unusual in the future... https://youtu.be/em9sUX5K1yM #ClimateChange #BeachWeather #NewNormal

Wassailing, which I always associated with spiced hard cider and Christmas carols, turns out (also) to be a pagan fertility rite focussing on fruit trees, which is gaining in popularity!

Inside Europe did a story on this the week before last (starts at 48:15)...

https://www.dw.com/en/more-trouble-for-uk-prime-minister-keir-starmer/audio-76057779

More detail on the celebration here
https://www.discoverbritain.com/history/traditions/wassailing/

#MorrisDancing #Orchards #PaganTrivia

Interest in installing solar panels in vineyards is growing. Here's a paper from Australia that examines their impact on pear trees & fruit.

tl/dr Panels created shade, which reduced yield, sugar concentration & color, but lessened impacts of extreme weather (heat and hail).

This study used fixed panels at 45° and 5°, with the latter causing greater crop losses, but power production was similar.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304423826000555

#Agrivoltaism #SolarPower #Orchards #FruitTrees #Research

I'm scanning my Dad's old slides and came across some he took of Richard Smart doing Concord grapevine canopy measurements in 1974 (probably in Hector, NY).

At this time he was at Cornell University studying his PhD under Nelson Shaulis, gaining experience that would lead to publication of Sunlight into Wine, the preeminent book on grapevine canopy management.

Richard passed away last July.

#Viticulture #CanopyManagement #History #Wine

The original seedling tree that bears the Bramley apple is not formally recognised as having significance, and a new owner of the property could cut it down.

There are efforts to raise the money needed to buy the property from Nottingham Trent University and secure its future.

Personally, I would love for the tree to be able to live on, be cherished and protected, even though many trees have been propagated through cuttings since...

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/feb/13/original-bramley-apple-tree-at-risk-site-for-sale

#HeritageApple #Apples

Estonia's Ministry of Regional Affairs and Agriculture is looking to help breed grapevines to make quality wine in their northern latitudes.

A nice overview of the breeding process, which usually takes decades...

https://news.err.ee/1609940807/work-on-estonia-s-first-ever-wine-grape-variety-underway

#ColdClimate #Viticulture #PlantBreeding #HardyGrapes #Wine #Estonia

DW's Inside Europe has an article about the use of robots in vineyards (and other crops) to treat vines with UV radiation to help control fungal disease (via the phytoalexin response). Treatment is at night, so doesn't interfere with other operations. Best case use of robots in vineyards!

Starts ~30 minutes in…

https://www.dw.com/en/why-did-15-migrants-die-in-greece-again/audio-75938850

#Robots #UltravioletRadiation #UVTreatment #Vineyard #Disease control

DW's Inside Europe has an article about the use of robots in vineyards (and other crops) to treat vines with UV radiation for controlling fungal disease (via the phytoalexin response). Treatment is at night, so doesn't interfere with other operations. Best case use of robots in vineyards!

Starts ~30 minutes in…

https://www.dw.com/en/why-did-15-migrants-die-in-greece-again/audio-75938850

#Robots #UltravioletRadiation #UVTreatment #Vineyard #DiseaseControl

The average doesn't tell the whole story and economic models are catching up to this fact. More warnings about the effects of climate change and the influence of extreme events on the economy. Economic models don't seem to take into account quality of life issues, either! https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/feb/05/flawed-economic-models-mean-climate-crisis-could-crash-global-economy-experts-warn #ClimateCrisis #ClimateChange #ExtremeWeather #TippingPoint

More tips on identifying AI-generated images... TL/DR - it's in the details... https://www.eweek.com/news/5-simple-ways-spot-ai-generated-images/ #AISlop #AIPictures #CriticalReview

One of my Mom's recipes she saved from a 70's magazine...

A "Kraft Main Dish Masterpiece:" Ham Rolls Continental!

Complete with green Jello as a side! 🙂

#70sRecipes #70sCulture #KraftCheese #Jello #Chuckle

Is that "recycled" plastic packaging actually recycled? How much CO2 does it prevent being generated as opposed to virgin plastic? It turns out, no, and 6% to 8% more. Be wary of claims made on manufacturer packaging and marketing materials - the petrochemical industry may be feeding them lines about the environmental impact of their processes and they lobby heavily to keep their market for oil growing... https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jan/27/recycled-plastic-packaging-claims-misleading-say-experts #Greenwashing #Plastics #CarbonEmissions #Recycling #Lobbying

Birds of prey are also helpful in vineyards, too -research in NZ was successful in showing reduced bird damage, and my parents encouraged hawkes in their Upstate NY table grape vineyards to great effect.

Ecosystem services FTW... :-)

I will forever remember the morning the Challenger Space Shuttle exploded. I was at Cornell University and on my way to take an exam. As an avid follower of the Space Shuttle programme the event devastated me - reading this 40-years-after article about what could have been brought back a lot of emotion...

I sincerely hope that the lessons learned are appreciated today with the push for space missions...

https://www.npr.org/2026/01/25/g-s1-106940/40-years-after-challenger

#SpaceShuttle #NASA #NormalizationOfDeviance #ChristaMcAuliffe

GPS tracking of birds of prey have shown how they change their behaviour around human activity. Knowing this will help best manage their needs and our wants.

This includes things such as how power lines and wind turbines are constructed.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jan/19/we-thought-they-would-ignore-us-how-humans-are-changing-the-way-raptors-behave

#Raptors #BirdsOfPrey #RenewableEnergy #Environment #Wildlife