Date: September 30, 2009 @ 10:26 AM

Harvest Update

We have been walking so many vineyards, tasting and deciding when to pick, that I have overlooked this blog and should be typing something…even if it makes sense.

So, where are we with the harvest of 2009?

The short answer is that it is looking great, but there is a long way to go.

Far Niente has brought in half of its Chardonnay and most of the rest is nearly ready to harvest. However, the winery has yet to bring in its first bit of Oakville Cabernet. The Chardonnay grapes have tasted fantastic and the early stages of fermentation have the telltale signs and flavors that I always look for in the best vintages.

I love walking into the winery, as the smells of fermentation are everywhere. It is an impression that thrills and pleases me as much today as it did 27 years ago, when it was the first year of fermentation in the building since Prohibition! At this time of year, the Great Hall has to be one of the most magical places you could imagine visiting.

EnRoute has brought in all of its Pinot. While the vineyard yields are lower than we might hope, the resulting quality is undeniable. Andrew has pressed off many of the tanks. Flavor, color, perfume and texture all hold the promise of it being an outstanding vintage for Russian River Pinot.

Nickel & Nickel has brought in small amounts of Cabernet from the very warmest vineyards  (Dragonfly, Hayne and Tench). The news is not that most of the harvest is still ahead of us, but that the new receiving equipment is doing a great job of removing jacks (not those wild playing cards but the little pieces of stems that can break off in the destemming machine) and of sorting out raisins through small slots on the shaker table. For a production geek, this is cool stuff. (Darice has already gone around showing off a baggy of the sorted out raisins.)

Dolce has almost all of its grapes hanging and hanging and hanging. That is normal, but the little rain that we got a week ago provided the first step towards what will be needed in November. In the meantime, Greg has a little Sauvignon Blanc in the winery so that he doesn’t feel left out.