The purpose of this guide is to voice what you are probably already unconsciously aware of. I have exhaustively read as many guides for viticulture, wine, wine tasting, and genetics as I can get my hands on. Truth be told, I did not think I would find this game very interesting when I started, but now I am completely captivated. Viticulture is a big part of that. In my studies, experience, and experimentations, I have come to many realizations, but I think one of the most important ones is the one I share with you on this page. People new to viticulture will find this especially useful. As I personally am not very strong in math, I will try to explain my thought process along the way, but I find it imperative to illustrate the duality of viticulture as an exact science, as well as an emotional art. That is to say that you can completely ignore the numbers, and still create great works of drinkable art, but that does not mean the science can’t guide you in the right direction.
There are so many contributing factors to all of this, but the one I will focus on here is what is commonly referred to as the “Preferred Tends Table”.
Most vine breeders or oenologists will happily provide a preferred tending table on their Wiki page describing a specific vine, or genetic profile. All vines with the same genetic profile will behave the same. I won’t get into the specifics of vine genetics as there are many useful and informative guides on the subject.
As an example, a vine that I use quite often is Calixes#69. She has also graciously provided her own page of Calixes' Preferred Tends. Looking at this page, I can tell that this particular vine has a genetic profile identical to #37. Her preferred tend table looks like this:
| Condition | Tend | Acid | Color | Grapes | Quality | Skin | Sugar | Vigor |
| Sagging | Mist | 2 | -2 | 4 | 1 | -4 | -5 | -3 |
| Wilting | Shade | -2 | -1 | -4 | 13 | 6 | 13 | -5 |
| Musty | Shade | -3 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 2 | -7 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Rustle | Trim | 1 | 2 | 6 | -5 | 2 | 3 | -1 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Shimmer | Pinch | 3 | 0 | 1 | -11 | 8 | 1 | -5 |
To understand this, I will briefly describe how vineyards function.
When a vineyard is built, there is a randomly generated sequence of conditions for that vineyard. This sequence never changes until the vineyard is destroyed. There are seven different possible conditions for a vineyard to be in while a vine is planted in it. They are:
Sagging Wilting Musty Fat Rustle Shrivel Shimmer
These are of course the short names for a longer phrase describing the current conditions such as “The grapes shimmer with moisture.” When a vine can be tended, there are seven different possible tends that can be made. They are:
Aerate Mist Pinch Shade Spread Tie Trim
So, you have a vineyard which cycles through a predetermined and constant sequence of seven possible tends, and at each point during the sequence you can choose to perform one of seven different possible tends. A study of vine genetics has shown us that for each different condition and tend combination, there is a unique and constant pattern for how the value of your grapes’ attributes will be effected.
In this one example, if the current condition of the vineyard were shimmer, it is suggested that we perform the pinch tending which would yield the following net changes in our grape attribute scores:
| Condition | Tend | Acid | Color | Grapes | Quality | Skin | Sugar | Vigor |
| Shimmer | Pinch | 3 | 0 | 1 | -11 | 8 | 1 | -5 |
Thanks to the hard work of others, namely Calixes in this case, we know this to be true before we ever start growing the vine. More importantly, if you understand vine genetics, you know this to be true of all GQQQKSSS vines. Now that we have determined that a vineyard has a set, unchanging sequence of conditions, and we know the outcome of specific tendings at specific conditions, it is possible to extrapolate the final result of our grape attribute values without ever planting the vine, provided that we know the sequence for that vineyard. As an example, I will use the sequence of one of my own vineyards to demonstrate.
One of the vineyards I use has the following condition sequence, and for purposes of this guide, will be used as our model vineyard.
Fat Rustle Fat Fat Wilting Shrivel Shrivel Shimmer Fat Musty Musty Musty Rustle Shrivel Wilting Wilting Musty Musty Shrivel Fat Shimmer Fat
Now, using the tend table that Calixes has provided for use, I should be able to determine the final product of this vine before ever planting it, which I will show you in this table:
| Condition | Tend | Acid | Color | Grapes | Quality | Skin | Sugar | Vigor |
| Base | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 | |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Rustle | Trim | 1 | 2 | 6 | -5 | 2 | 3 | -1 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Wilting | Shade | -2 | -1 | -4 | 13 | 6 | 13 | -5 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Shimmer | Pinch | 3 | 0 | 1 | -11 | 8 | 1 | -5 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Musty | Shade | -3 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 2 | -7 |
| Musty | Shade | -3 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 2 | -7 |
| Musty | Shade | -3 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 2 | -7 |
| Rustle | Trim | 1 | 2 | 6 | -5 | 2 | 3 | -1 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Rustle | Trim | 1 | 2 | 6 | -5 | 2 | 3 | -1 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Wilting | Shade | -2 | -1 | -4 | 13 | 6 | 13 | -5 |
| Wilting | Shade | -2 | -1 | -4 | 13 | 6 | 13 | -5 |
| Musty | Shade | -3 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 2 | -7 |
| Musty | Shade | -3 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 2 | -7 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Shimmer | Pinch | 3 | 0 | 1 | -11 | 8 | 1 | -5 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Results | 0 | 27 | 82 | 89 | 103 | 136 | 15 |
What should be immediately apparent to you is that this vine has not actually completed its life cycle by the time we get to my last documented condition. I obviously have not been keeping good notes, but it will not hurt our exploration into the subject. Looking at this, I can see that the preferred tending table provides us with a very balanced end result, that is not lacking in any of the typically desired categories.
I am afraid though that many people do not understand that this is not the only possible outcome of this particular vine, nor is it even the “best”. Labeling something as the “best” is of course subjective, as it depends on your particular tastes. Let’s suppose I wanted higher quality grapes, and did not care so much about the sugar outcome. If we suppose my new preferred tending table were:
| Condition | Tend | Acid | Color | Grapes | Quality | Skin | Sugar | Vigor |
| Sagging | Mist | 2 | -2 | 4 | 1 | -4 | -5 | -3 |
| Wilting | Pinch | -2 | -2 | 7 | 10 | 7 | -6 | -11 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Rustle | Aerate | -1 | -3 | 2 | 13 | -6 | -7 | -9 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Shimmer | Tie | -3 | -3 | -3 | 5 | -5 | -9 | -6 |
Then my new vineyard results would be:
| Condition | Tend | Acid | Color | Grapes | Quality | Skin | Sugar | Vigor |
| Base | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 | |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Rustle | Aerate | -1 | -3 | 2 | 13 | -6 | -7 | -9 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Wilting | Pinch | -2 | -2 | 7 | 10 | 7 | -6 | -11 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Shimmer | Tie | -3 | -3 | -3 | 5 | -5 | -9 | -6 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Rustle | Aerate | -1 | -3 | 2 | 13 | -6 | -7 | -9 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Rustle | Aerate | -1 | -3 | 2 | 13 | -6 | -7 | -9 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Wilting | Pinch | -2 | -2 | 7 | 10 | 7 | -6 | -11 |
| Wilting | Pinch | -2 | -2 | 7 | 10 | 7 | -6 | -11 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Shrivel | Spread | 2 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Shimmer | Tie | -3 | -3 | -3 | 5 | -5 | -9 | -6 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Results | 0 | 0 | 80 | 156 | 66 | 64 | 1 |
In this case, you can see that my vine has reached the end of its life cycle, but I have traded a loss in sugar for a gain in quality. I think what is important to remember in this case is that every vineyard has it’s own unique condition sequence, so in essence, there is not always a single preferred tending table. Take into consideration that with seven possible vineyard conditions and seven possible tendings per condition each with their own possible outcome, there are 823,543 unique preferred tending tables per vine. That is an extremely high but finite number. Therefore it is possible to evaluate each one of them, but not likely that many people are willing to put forth the effort to do so. If you take into consideration that the true ideal tending of a specific vine on a specific vineyard for a specific attribute or group of attributes is not a preferred tending table at all, but a hand-picked tending for each new condition that seeks to maximize the final outcome, then you can start to appreciate both the science and art of viticulture. So, with that to consider, I will leave you with a final question and answer to further intrigue the mind and hopefully open up new possibilities.
Q: Would this vine be good for making a high tannin, spirit wine? A: Well, what if you started like this? You tell me.
| Condition | Tend | Acid | Color | Grapes | Quality | Skin | Sugar | Vigor |
| Sagging | Tie | -2 | 1 | -6 | 6 | 8 | -11 | -10 |
| Wilting | Spread | 0 | 2 | -1 | 14 | 6 | -9 | -6 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Rustle | Trim | 1 | 2 | 6 | -5 | 2 | 3 | -1 |
| Shrivel | Aerate | -3 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 8 | -2 |
| Shimmer | Pinch | 3 | 0 | 1 | -11 | 8 | 1 | -5 |
| Condition | Tend | Acid | Color | Grapes | Quality | Skin | Sugar | Vigor |
| Base | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 | |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Rustle | Trim | 1 | 2 | 6 | -5 | 2 | 3 | -1 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Wilting | Spread | 0 | 2 | -1 | 14 | 6 | -9 | -6 |
| Shrivel | Aerate | -3 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 8 | -2 |
| Shrivel | Aerate | -3 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 8 | -2 |
| Shimmer | Pinch | 3 | 0 | 1 | -11 | 8 | 1 | -5 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Rustle | Trim | 1 | 2 | 6 | -5 | 2 | 3 | -1 |
| Shrivel | Aerate | -3 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 8 | -2 |
| Rustle | Trim | 1 | 2 | 6 | -5 | 2 | 3 | -1 |
| Shrivel | Aerate | -3 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 8 | -2 |
| Wilting | Spread | 0 | 2 | -1 | 14 | 6 | -9 | -6 |
| Wilting | Spread | 0 | 2 | -1 | 14 | 6 | -9 | -6 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Musty | Spread | 1 | 1 | -3 | 11 | 2 | 9 | -1 |
| Shrivel | Aerate | -3 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 8 | -2 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Shimmer | Pinch | 3 | 0 | 1 | -11 | 8 | 1 | -5 |
| Fat | Shade | -2 | -1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| Results | 0 | 31 | 36 | 102 | 128 | 105 | 42 |