For those of you who are unfamiliar, we currently have three estate vineyards that we farm. The first is the 13.5 acre Glenway Vineyard located at the winery. Next is the 4 acre Chappelle Charlemagne site located about 5 miles southeast of the winery outside the small town of Flint Hill. The last and newest is our 3.5 acre Kennridge Vineyard.

Established in 2003, the Kennridge Vineyard has four separate planting blocks of Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Viognier. The site is situated on a south facing slope with excellent air drainage and moderately deep, loamy soils. Rows are oriented up the slope from north to south to provide east/west exposure to the sun. This combined with a VSP trellis takes full advantage of every ray of available sunlight for ripening fruit.

Kennridge Vineyard in 2009. The trees on the left have been removed to make way for Petit Verdot.

The vines at Kennridge are grafted to a vigor limiting rootstock and planted at a high density to encourage competition for water and nutrients. This helps to keep the vine in balance, reducing canopy growth which in turn allows for improved air flow through the vineyard resulting in reduced disease pressure.

Grapes produced at Kennridge have been used in many of our best wine including our award winning 2006 “R” (aka: Super Meritage) red wine, many of our finest Viognier vintages as well as making up 50% of the yet to be bottled 2008 “R” red wine, just to name a few. With such a reputation for premium grapes, it is no surprise that we would decide to expand this planting.

The new vineyards will be established in two acre increments over the next three years beginning in the spring of 2011 and will total roughly 5 acres by 2013. The first plantings will expand the Petit Verdot and Viognier and will also establish a new block of Vidal Blanc. Subsequent plantings will see more Viognier established and a new block of Merlot.

With the trees gone, preparations for the 2011 planting can begin. Viognier will occupy the top of the slope (bottom of picture) with Petit Verdot at the bottom

Future site for Merlot and Viognier in 2012.

Needless to say there is much to be done between now and spring. First and foremost, a new fence must be constructed (more on this in subsequent postings) to deter deer who would love feeding on the sweet shoot tips of the newly established vines.

Second, the planting areas must be prepared for the new vines. Samples are taken and tests are done to determine the nutrient status of the soil. Then, lime and compost are added accordingly to amend and enrich the soil. Deep ripping of the ground to 30 inches will provide a consistent soil depth for improved root development as well as removing large stones that could interfere with planting and working the vineyard. Next, the ground will be prepared with a plow and disc to provide a smooth, groomed surface before establishing the grassy cover crop.

Only after all this is complete are we ready to plant the new grapevines. Those vines will arrive from the nursery around the end of April and will be planted in mid May after the threat of spring frost has past. After planting follows trellis and irrigation installation, and tying and training of the young vines.

After all that, we can expect to see the first grapes in about three years, the first commercial scale crop in year four and a return on investment after year six, if all things go well. A long time to wait to realize the fruits of all that labor and investment but we know the wait will be worth it in the end.

Until next time,

Tom

Dry weather and high temperatures accelerated the 2010 growing season and set us three to four weeks ahead of our normal schedule. While these conditions are typically considered ideal for ripening fruit, they come at a price. The largest benefits of dry weather are reduced disease pressure and reduced vigor (or vine growth) in the vineyard. Most fungal diseases that are damaging to the fruit and vine thrive in wet, humid and cool conditions. Also, with less water available, the vines have less potential to overgrow the trellis. This means less labor is required to hedge back and thin out the green canopy. Under normal circumstances these operations would be necessary to encourage airflow through the vineyard, helping to create a dry environment which keeps disease pressure low. In dry years, they become less critical – even unnecessary- and disease management becomes a more self regulating process. From the vineyard managers’ point of view, this is a huge benefit not only because I sleep better at night, but also because labor and chemical costs are significantly reduced. And less spraying is a good thing all around. Now though, the job of ensuring that the vine has just the right amount of water to survive, properly ripen its crop and ward off dehydration becomes a much more important part of a vineyard manager’s job (see my Post #9- Drought Hits the East, for more details).

The heat also has its upsides and its downsides. Aside from its effect on the vines water requirements, sugar development in the fruit is directly influenced by temperature. Low temperatures may not allow sugars to accumulate to a high enough concentration to achieve proper alcohol levels in the wine. Conversely, too much heat can cause sugar development to out pace other important factors such as color, flavor and aromatic development. This was the case throughout much of Virginia this year. I have heard of winemakers waiting for proper color or flavors to develop before harvesting and winding up with fruit that has an alcohol potential of 17% or more! In the West this is a typical scenario and there are systems available to remove excess alcohol from the wines. Those systems are not in place in the East where we normally struggle to realize 12% to 13% alcohol.

Understand, the issues associated with hot and dry weather are generally considered to be ‘a good problem to have’ but they are one’s that the prudent winegrower must be mindful of if he is to produce a high quality, well balanced wine.

Cabernet Franc ripens in our Glenway Vineyard.

Here at The Cellars, we had very good results from the 2010 growing season. Warm, dry weather during bloom resulted in better than normal fruit set. That, combined with good water management that kept the vines protected from the rigors of water stress (in this case, dehydration) resulted in average yields for most varieties and in some cases, improved yields. RC customers will be happy to know that Petite Verdot was one variety where we saw yield improvement – but no promises… it is still too early to know whether Jason will bottle any as a single variety or use it all in the Meritage blend.

We did see some discrepancy in terms of flavor and color development in relation to sugar accumulation and as a result, alcohol levels will be a bit higher this year compared to most. However, with careful monitoring of the vineyards and thoughtful practices in the cellar, we were able to avoid many of the pitfalls of a drought-like season and the 2010 vintage is shaping up to be one of the best yet!

Until next time,

Tom

Here at Rappahannock Cellars, we first noticed this insect in 2008. They showed up in very small numbers at first, mainly on and around the winery building. As the weather turned cool, they made their way inside but were nothing more that a passing annoyance for our staff and customers. By the end of the 2009 harvest season, their numbers had grown to the point of being very unsightly. They became a general disturbance in the tasting room and offices, crawling all over walls, computer keyboards and tasting glasses. Not long after that, the winemaker, Jason, began complaining about stepping on the smelly creatures on the floor of the cellar and having to pick them off of process machinery, as well as the fermentation tanks. But even then, they were little more than an annoyance.

This year the whole picture changed. We first noticed them in our fruit samples from our estate vineyards. A single bug in a two pound sample of Seyval Blanc was enough to spoil the juice. Sure, we could still get our numbers, but the sample was otherwise unapproachable. It stunk! Jason immediately went on the offensive. “How are we going to eradicate this insect?” he asked, noting that “this could put our entire vintage at risk.”

Having never considered stink bugs as a vineyard pest, I was at a loss for control options. After a few phone calls and a little internet research, I found that there are some effective options for ‘immediate knock-down’ but of course, the come with several limitations, including that many of the solutions are “non selective” treatments. This means that they kill everything, both pests and beneficial insects alike. As a grower who has worked hard to encourage a population of beneficial and predatory insects in our vineyards, I was hesitant to use any of the popular products. And there was another challenge that occurred to me: once the vineyard was treated, what would prevent the stink bugs from re-infesting the vineyard as they moved in from the outlying trees?

I then remembered seeing an advertisement in one of our trade magazines for an organic treatment which uses a chemical extracted from chrysanthemum flowers as the active ingredient. It is also a non-selective product with little to no residual activity. I began to formulate a strategy. I decided to try treating each block of the vineyard as they became ready to harvest the evening before picking. I would direct the spray only into the fruit zone, leaving the rest of the canopy untreated and hopefully reducing contact with beneficial insects. Also, by treating only the block that was to be harvested, I would not be affecting beneficial insects in other blocks of the vineyard, in hopes that they might repopulate the treated block after the chemical had broken down and become ineffective. With a “zero day PHI” (Pre Harvest Interval – a measure of an appropriate time to wait to harvest after treatment) I could treat a block almost immediately before harvest and thereby reduce the potential of re-infestation of the stinky little pests. After discussing my strategy with several colleagues, it seemed this was a sound approach to the problem. In fact, I was soon contacted by Dr. Doug Pfeiffer (Professor, Department of Entomology, Virginia Tech) who asked if he could do pre-and-post treatment counts in the next vineyard block to be harvested. Rappahannock to spearhead research? Uh, yes please!

Shortly after that, I learned of another product that is selective to sucking insects (that is, it has to be ingested by the insect) and thereby soft on beneficial and other non damaging insects (with the exception of honey bees.) The downside was that it requires 24-36 hours to actually kill the affected bugs.

Now I decided to get scientific! I would treat half the block with one product according to my original plan, and the other half with the other, following the label’s instructions and treating the entire canopy. I would leave two rows between each half of the block untreated as a buffer between the two treatments and as a control for the experiment. After confirming this method with Doug, the trial was on. The day before harvest, one of Doug’s colleagues came to the vineyard to do a pre-treatment count. The numbers were astounding – 40 % of clusters were infested at row ends where the block is bordered by trees. In the interior section and opposite row ends the count dropped to about 4% affected clusters (add stink bugs to the list of reasons to avoid planting grapes near trees.) After the counting was finished, I treated the block with the prescribed methods.

The next morning, Doug and two other colleges arrived ahead of the pickers and began counting again. At the end, the results were impressive. In the untreated rows, population levels were relatively unchanged – no big surprise, though the bugs were mainly found in the canopy, suggesting that they may have stop feeding and moved to the leaves during the cooler nighttime temperatures. In the rows treated with the first product, there were no stink bugs found either in the canopy or on the fruit. I thought this was a bit odd since I directed the spray only at the fruit zone. Perhaps the volume of air from the sprayer carried the treatment through the row and into the canopy of the neighboring row. In the section treated with the second product, there were no stink bugs on the fruit and only “a few” in the canopy. This was a better than expected result, especially given the relatively long period of time required for this product to kill the insect. Our observations at the winery crush pad were that there was no sign of the pest in the harvested fruit with the exception of one bin that contained the fruit from the untreated rows – and even then I only saw one bug.

Since then I have been using both products prior to harvesting grapes based on the timing of when I can get out to do the application. When I can do a spray two days before harvest, I use the second product (this is my preferred choice due to its “soft” properties,) and when I can’t apply a treatment until the day before, (with harvest season being what it is) I use first product.

It would seem that the experiment was a success but there is still much we do not know. For example, how many stink bugs (say, per ton of grapes) does it take to ruin a batch of wine? There is some preliminary research from the University of Maryland that shows that as few as 10 stink bug’s per lug (25 lbs) of grapes is enough to taint wine (stink bug taint is likened to the smell of fresh cilantro) to the point of being noticeable to the trained nose. 10 bugs per lug and the scent are overwhelming to even a novice wine drinker. Based on our own observations of infested samples here at the winery, I suspect the threshold may be even lower than that.

Is there an effective control option during the growing season so that we don’t have to treat the vineyard – at the last minute – during our busiest time of year? How can we control the stink bugs on a state-wide (or even national basis) in order to limit their spread? These are questions that must be answered. After all, wine is not the only commodity to be affected by this new, foreign pest. Many fruit and vegetable crops are at risk. I have talked with many growers and farm market owners who have suffered substantial losses due to stink bug feeding. I myself am still unsure of what effect the insect’s feeding might have on the quality of future grape crops. Certainly the occurrence of botrytis and other fruit rots would increase if infestation levels become worse. Add to that, the impact and general annoyance that this invasion creates in our homes, businesses, automobiles and every other place they can crawl into to seek shelter from the coming winter temperatures. This year, our winery building is inundated with the little stinkers. They are all over our desks and even getting in peoples’ hair. And they’re on the move. What started as a few bugs imported from China to a small town in Pennsylvania, has spread across states to the south and west. Because they subsist on an enormous variety of plant hosts for food and mating, this isn’t just a problem for eastern crops; they may soon become a national epidemic.

It will befall our state and local officials to seek a region-wide response to this invasive pest, and it needs to happen before there is any further economic impact or our fragile agricultural industries.

It’s hard to believe that here we are, on the 29^th of September, and I’m about to tell you that harvest is nearing its end. But here we are!

As mentioned in my last update, we’ve been expecting an early harvest since the start of the growing season. When the picking began on Aug. 17^th, our suspicions were confirmed. We now have all the white varieties in the cellar, and most of them are completing fermentation. By keeping the temperature low, we’ve intentionally let these wines ferment very slowly in the hopes of retaining as much fruit character as possible. This is especially important in such a season as the one we’re having. With the hot, dry weather pushing us toward early harvest dates, we’re seeing that the sugar and pH levels are increasing faster than flavors and proper fruit maturity. This puts us at risk of having very high alcohol wines with little varietal character. It is often a tricky business in trying to decide when to pick if the numbers tell us the fruit is ready but our senses tell us to wait. This is where a proper understanding of the vineyard and the fruit come into play. The winemaker and winegrower must have an intimate knowledge of how the fruit will respond to weather, hang time, and cellar practices, in order to achieve the best expression of the varietal in the final wine.

Currently, we still have most of our red varieties in the vineyard, with the only exceptions being Malbec and Norton (I’m still having trouble wrapping my head around the fact that we picked Norton a good week ahead of when we expect to pick our Cabernet Franc!) Again, we are playing a waiting game with the fruit – waiting for it tell us when to pick. However, we expect to resume picking on October 2^nd, after the forecasted rain has passed. The weather forecast is not looking promising for further fruit development, so we’ll take samples one last time to try and make our best interpretation of the numbers (and the flavors) to prepare for one last final push to the end of the season.

Until next time,

Tom

We don’t expect to receive any other fruit until about the first week of September, when our first lot of Viognier and Chapelle Charlemagne Chardonnay arrive. So that gives Jason and I some precious needed time to prepare for this early season.

Our other pressing matter at this time is trying to keep the wildlife out of the fruit. As a result of the dry summer, food sources for deer, birds and bear are scarce, so they have their eyes trained on our ever increasingly sweet fruit. We are hanging bird netting and other scare devices in the vineyard, patching up our fences and of course, Wahoo and Louise are hard at work as well.

Until next time,

Tom

These conditions, each taken on their own, would not be cause for concern. We have always told you that grapevines prefer hot, dry weather. This is very true in regard to disease pressure and ripening potential — and it is these very conditions that make California an ideal environment for winegrowing. Growers in the Golden State have it pretty easy in many regards compared to their eastern counterparts. However, one thing they must be diligent about is water management. After all, nothing will live for long without water.

Here in the east, liberal amounts of rainfall (combined with soils that have a high water-holding capacity) create conditions where surface soils above 18” or so remain reasonably moist. This causes a vine to root rather shallow, since it does not have to look to deeper soils to find water. But in those rare years where water is not readily available, and extreme temperatures cause surface soils to dry out quickly, vines with a shallow root system will begin to show signs of water stress earlier than those with deeper roots.

This is also the case in vineyards that are regularly irrigated. In the West, this is very often the case as there is no choice but to irrigate in regions with little to no summer rainfall. In Virginia, irrigations systems are installed mostly as an insurance policy. They are used regularly in the first few years while vineyards are being established, assuring that a vine grows to reach the wires and develop strong roots. Prudent growers will begin to restrict water applications by the third year, forcing the vines to look deeper for moist soils. Many growers (ourselves included,) will encourage “cover crops” on the vineyard floor to compete with the vines for surface moisture; again, causing the roots to look deep for water and further increasing the vines natural drought tolerance.

Many readers may remember winemakers across the state singing the praises of the 2007 vintage for its dry, ‘California like’ weather conditions; so you may ask, “Why are you concerned now?” There are two distinct differences between 2007 and the current year:

First is the timing of the dry weather. In ’07 we had moderate to normal amounts of rainfall through most of the growing season. It wasn’t until late summer that things began to dry up and conditions became ideal for ripening fruit. Even then, many vineyards (particularly those in the central and southern parts of the state) began to exhibit signs of water stress. Water stress, especially after veraison (the point at which grapes begin to change color and build sugar) can inhibit fruit maturation… so those growers with irrigations systems were advised to turn them on to get their grapes to harvest.

The second difference between 2007 and 2010 are the extreme temperatures. High ambient temperatures can cause surface soils to dry out more rapidly, reducing available water for the roots to access. This condition is further compounded by increased transpiration of water through the vines leaves as it tries to cool itself, much as people do when they sweat. This creates a situation where the vine requires more water than it normally would and cannot find it in the now arid soil; a dangerous combination to say the least.

Here at ‘The Cellars,’ we are using a two-pronged approach to deal with the hot, dry weather. First, we had to address the cover crop in the area just beneath the vine row.

Over the past several years, our non-chemical weed control program has encouraged the establishment of native grasses and broad leaf plants in this area. This cover has provided several benefits over the years: competing with the vines for water and thereby reducing the vigor of the vine while increasing its drought tolerance (our vineyard is showing less stress than some of our fellow growers that have no cover crop); eliminating soil-damaging herbicide use in the vineyard; and creating a habitat for beneficial insects that reduce our dependence on harmful insecticide sprays. Now though, in these very dry conditions, this competitive cover will begin to work against us by sucking up what little rainwater is delivered to the vineyard, as well as what we can deliver through irrigation. So, the cover crop must be eliminated!

This brings us to the second prong of our strategy; turning on the water. Certainly, with enough water delivered through the irrigation system, eventually it would reach the roots of the vine — despite the competition from cover crops. In extreme heat though, the vines are transpiring water very rapidly (upwards of 3.25 gallons per vine, per day.) With water being such a precious resource (especially without some rain to replenish our well) and considering the energy consumption needed to continually run our pump, we need to make the process of replacing this water as efficient as possible.

Our vineyard is broken up into 10 individual irrigation zones and the initial watering in each zone lasted about 24 hours. Subsequent applications will be done on an ‘as needed’ basis in 12 hour increments; during the evening and night time hours when temperatures are cooler and evaporation potential at a minimum. If dry conditions and the need for irrigation continue, moisture monitoring sensors can be installed to further increase irrigation efficiency.

Beyond that, we can address the permanent, grassy cover crop in the areas between the rows and/or spray the vines with a heavy coating of fine clay to reflect the suns rays reducing the rate of transpiration. These are more extreme measures that could have lasting repercussions such as erosion (in the case of the former) and reduced or delayed ripening in the case of the latter. These would be “last-ditch” efforts to combat a prolonged drought in the case that we had to shut down the irrigation system.

Fortunately, we are a long way from having to take such extreme measures, as the dry weather has set the clock ahead for us and we are rapidly approaching harvest. Careful monitoring of the vineyard will be necessary as always, we simply have one more thing to be mindful of.

Until next time….
-Tom

Adding to that, a second frost event occurred on May 10th. This was a wide spread event that affected vineyards from as far south as Charlottesville, and northward into Loudon County. Many vineyards incurred total losses, while some were completely spared. Our Kenridge site was again undamaged, but Glenway had spotty damage, with losses in Viognier at around 30% and Vidal Blanc at about 80%. Chapelle Charlemagne was also affected, although less severely than on the April 29th event.

Such is the life of a winegrower. Forecasters generally do a good job of warning us about these damaging weather events; but if vineyard owners have not invested in some form of frost protection, all the forecasts in the world won’t be of any help. So, what can be done? The best form of frost protection is to plant on sites that are less susceptible to frost. That is, sites that allow for cold air to drain away from the planted areas. This requires proper planning prior to planting. Temperature readings must be taken around the site with careful observations on cold mornings to locate areas where cold air accumulates. Careful selection of grape varieties must also be made to avoid planting frost sensitive varieties in questionable areas of the site. High wire trellis systems such as Geneva Double Curtain can be utilized to raise the growing points of the vine above the potential frost line. A matter of inches can make the difference between frost avoidance and absolute devastation. On established sites where this planning was not done, or if the risk factors were determined to be low enough to plant vines in these frost-prone locations, wind machines can be installed. These machines (some of which resemble windmills) can be utilized to stir up any colder air below with the warmer air above, thereby raising the overall temperature of the site. In the absence of these machines, some growers will even hire helicopters to hover over their site to create the same effect as wind machines. The downside of this approach (aside from the cost) is the need for helicopters to leave the site for refueling, which in turn leaves the grower unprotected during the helicopter’s absence.

Here at Rappahannock Cellars, we are investigating the investment in wind machines to avoid future damage. The cost of these machines however, ($15-25K for a machine that covers 6-10 acres respectively) is a difficult pill to swallow for a site that is only sporadically at risk to frost. Murphy’s Law would dictate that once installed, we would likely never need them. But if they saved us from only a single devastating frost, they have paid for themselves several fold.

Meanwhile the growing season continues to progress. As of the writing of this update, shoot growth in most varieties has reached the top wires of the trellis. Shoot thinning, a process of selectively removing shoots along the cordon to a specific density (shoots per foot of cordon) is complete, and most varieties have completed bloom. We are now at a growth stage known as ‘fruit set’. After a successful bloom and correct pollination of the flowers, the grape berries begin to form. At this stage, several time-critical tasks must be performed. Shoots that remain outside of the catch wires must be tucked into them and oriented in an upward direction. At the same time, leaves will be removed from around the fruit to increase light exposure and air flow in the fruit zone, reducing the potential for diseases to develop. This step is especially important for red varieties. Exposure to light will facilitate the degradation of a particular chemical compound in grapes called methoxypyrazine [MP]. These pyrazines are what contribute the undesirable vegetal or ‘bell pepper’ characters in red wines. Red fruit at harvest time could be fully ripened in all respects (sugar, pH, color, etc) but if high quantities of MP’s remain; red wines will express unripe characteristics. There is no way to correct this situation in the cellar and it is completely dependent on the prudent winegrower to assure these qualities are not present in their fruit. But is a delicate process; it must be done early enough and not so completely as to cause sun burning of the grapes, which could cause ‘cooked’ flavors in some of the more delicate white varieties – not to mention significant crop losses. This is but one example of the fact that fine wines are first made in the vineyard.

‘Till next time,

Cheers!

-Tom

To begin with, buds that had developed on last year’s green shoots, hardened off during their winter dormancy. After spring pruning, we retained only a fraction of the total buds. But as the weather turned warm, the vines emerged from their dormant stage; the roots pushed water and stored carbohydrates (sap) to the above-ground portions of the vines. This causes the buds to swell, and eventually, new shoots and leaves begin to develop. Those shoots will continue to grow as the season progresses; eventually, they will provide not only the leaves on the vine, but also the grape clusters themselves.

This is a critical time in the vineyard on several fronts. Our greatest risk right now is a spring frost. While the shoots are still very small (1-5 inches,) an early frost or freeze could potentially kill the vine’s tender green tissue – placing the entire crop at a severe risk. Early bud-breaking varieties, such as Chardonnay and Cabernet Franc, can experience a total crop loss from this kind of “frost attack.” Here at Rappahannock Cellars, there is the potential risk of a frost event up until about the first week of May. With early bud development on most varieties this year, as well as shoot growth of approximately 1-3 inches in some areas, we’ll be in a high risk situation for several more weeks.

The potential for disease is also very high at this time of year; the current weather conditions promote the development of several fungal diseases. Furthermore, rapid vine growth has generated unprotected tissue that’s susceptible to Phomopsis and Black Rot, as well as Downy and Powdery Mildews. Needless to say, growers must be diligent to keep their vines protected from frost and disease during this very critical period in vineyard. But hard work always pays off, and I’m particularly enthusiastic about this year’s growing season. I’ll be sure to keep you up to date as the year progresses, and feel free to email me if you have any questions.

Cheers,

Tom

On the whole, I was very pleased with the quality of the fruit in 2008. Going through my records I find, with only a few exceptions, that all of our fruit came into the winery with text book numbers for sugar and pH and all the grapes were free of rot or botrytis. White grapes showed improved flavors in comparison to the 2007 vintage and the red varieties all had excellent color and flavor development. Yields were improved from the 2007 vintage which was affected by frost, poor fruit set and dehydration. Most blocks, however, were still below our target numbers. This was probably a result of cool, rainy conditions in the spring. When the vines are in their bloom stage, flowers on the grapevine require warm, dry weather for proper pollination.

A question was posed to me several weeks ago by our winemaker, Jason. Of the past three vintages; 2006, 2007 or 2008, which did I prefer? My answer was a resounding 2008!

When asked why, my response was this… While the 2006 vintage was a bumper crop and while quality parameters were good, they weren’t great. In contrast, 2007 was a remarkable year that provided equally remarkable fruit quality because of drought conditions throughout the year and severely reduced crop loads. By new world standards, 2007 was a vintage that for Virginia only comes once every ten or fifteen years. And thus, it was an anomaly. 2008 on the other hand was a very typical season for Virginia. Winegrowers across the state faced all of the challenges that our climate can provide. So, to have our fruit come in with quality parameters that might rival some of the best growing regions in Europe is a testament to what can be achieved in Virginia.

Our climate is not one that can produce wines like those of some other new world wine regions on a consistent basis. But with proper practices in the vineyard and the cellar, we can produce exceptional wines more in line with those of the old world. For this winery, I see 2008 as a looking glass into the future of Virginia wine.

Cheers,

Tom Kelly