They are all on an east coast cold weather rootstock or on their own roots
which will not do well here-different soil types etc... That has been the
elusive part of this search. Lots of nurseries sell winegrapes on their
own roots but the locals tell me they will only last a few years before
secumbing to disease. Hence the need for the specific rootstock which can
handle the drought stress of this climate, the alkaline, rocky soil, and
allow for the proper absorption of some important micronutrients like
magnesium which greatly affect the characteristics of the wines, especially
the reds of which I am interested.

I have emailed Double A to see if they are willing to do some small contract
growing with cultivars suited to my climate and on a rootstock that will
flourish here. The material is available from a California university
program to vineyards and certifies its material as disease free. They have
everything I need but they won't sell to me since I am just a homeowner
growing for fun and in small quantities.

If I could find a source for even a single plant of the rootstock, I would
try the grafting myself. But that would only give me the syrah and merlot.
The tempranillo is a spanish variety which as yet is uncommon in the states
and only available from a couple of California sources(as far as I know) who
only sell to commercial endeavors. My research has shown that this grape is
well suited to my climate and would be great for blending with the other
two. If I could grow a good cabernet here I would but cabernet does not
produce good flavor here according to other growers in the area so the
tempranillo would give my blends a similar characteristic while adding a
little spanish zing.

As you can probably tell, I'm a little anal about getting the right stock.
There are easier ways to go about this but I want to do things right the
first time and don't want to waste my precious water resources growing vines
that end up failing or producing inferior product.

Thanks for all your help. I'm crossing my fingers that I get a positive
response from Double A vineyards.

> From: (Doug Miller)
> Organization: None
> Newsgroups: rec.crafts.winemaking
> Date: Sat, 01 May 2004 23:38:58 GMT
> Subject: grapevine nurseries
>
> In article >, figaro >
> wrote:
>> I looked them up before I posted and they are mainly a cold-region grape
>> nursery. They don't carry any of the grapes that do better in my warm
>> climate like merlot or tempranillo. They do have a shiraz but I worry any
>> cultivars they have would be more suited to upstate New York than
>> mediterranean San Diego. Thanks for the input. I still get a thrill about
>> how the internet has made this kind of dialog possible. And if I still
>> lived in Ithaca, I would be all set. Thanks again.
>>
> Since you didn't include any context, I have to assume that you're referring
> to the two posts that have suggested you look at Double A Vineyards.
>
> If so... perhaps you need to look again:
> http://www.rakgrape.com/pdf_files/03...echarchart.pdf
>
> They do indeed sell warm climate vines including Merlot and Cab Sauv, but you
> have to scroll all the way to the end of the document to see them.