Dover Canyon Winery

Shit Happens: The Exploding Fish Emulsion

In March and April we receive the last of our spring rains. This is the time of year we like to give the soil around the vines a little boost by pumping diluted fish and kelp emulsion through a temporary drip irrigation system. We only want to do this during the spring rains so the native precipitation will carry the emulsion deep into the soil, replacing nutrients naturally. The fish and kelp combination also encourages the biodiversity and health of the cover crop and soil life, including natural fungi, microbes, worms, and insects.  We ordered a barrel—a 50 gallon drum—of fish and kelp emulsion from a firm in Oregon. Unfortunately, the emulsion was on backorder for a long time and didn’t arrive until spring was over and the rains nothing but a memory.

So we put the drum in the walnut processing shed until the next spring. It sat in the open shed through a hot summer and fall and a cold winter. The following spring arrived. One sunny morning around 7 am Dan was eager to get started on vineyard chores.  With no particular warning to me he said, "Hey, come help me set up the fish emulsion drip!" I protested sleepily that I was still in my peejays.  I would also be working in the tasting room that day, so I wanted to change into some clean jeans and a sweater first. "No, you don’t need to change. This will just take a minute."

So I let him talk me into riding down to the creekside barn on the ATV, still dressed in my black velour pajamas, with a pair of Uggs on my cold little feet. Dan unscrewed the cap on the drum and explained that my job was to kneel at the base of the drum and hold a five-gallon bucket steady while he dumped a few gallons of fish emulsion into the bucket. Our drip emission feeder is a five-gallon model, so Dan would then pour the emulsion into the feeder and set the drip rate. Once the water was turned on, the water would pass through the feeder, dilute the emulsion and carry it up the hill, depositing it at the base of each vine in a steady drip.

So there I was, kneeling down and holding the bucket as Dan tipped the drum over. We were unaware that over the course of the year, the emulsion had fermented anaerobically in its enclosed drum. Its contents had morphed into something even more awful than the original contents.

Natural Resources

At Dover Canyon, we are committed to preserving natural habitats and resources existing on our property, while practicing responsible and sustainable agriculture. We also actively campaign against waste of natural resources, and we support small-scale, sustainable agriculture.

ØOrganic Farming

Our walnut orchard and vineyard are seeded with natural cover crops of rye, barley, clover and mustard to encourage healthy soils, biodiversity and water retention.

ØNatural Gardening

Our winery gardens are composted and mulched with material from our lawns, garden and orchard. Completely natural and pesticide free, our gardens provide us with abundant crops of tomatoes, herbs, lettuces, vegetables and flowers.

ØWildlife Habitats

We are a certified wildlife habitat in the National Wildlife Federation’s registry.

In our landscaping, we carefully incorporate native California plants which provide food and habitat for butterflies, birds, small mammals and a myriad of other small creatures.  Our property also has centurion walnut and oak trees, a seven-acre walnut orchard, fruiting bushes, and areas of open grass which provide habitats for hawks, owls and other wildlife.