Harvest began for Merryvale on August 20th with Sauvignon Blanc and Sauvignon Musque from Juliana Vineyards. Since then, we have also picked Juliana Vineyards Semillon, and additional Sauvignon Blanc and Sauvignon Musque from the Oakville appellation, all crushed at Starmont. On average, we have been harvesting Sauvignon Blanc around 23 or 24 Brix and it has nice natural acidity. We are optimistic about the quality as the vines have shown beautiful melon, citrus, and floral flavors, and yields have been average or slightly below average. We will finish harvesting our warmer climate Sauvignon Blanc early next week, and two Oak Knoll blocks of SB will continue to ripen on the vines.We anticipate beginning the harvest of Pinot noir at Stanly Ranch in Carneros near Labor Day. Some of our blocks of Chardonnay are also close.
We also have Merlot in Calistoga that is now at 23.5 Brix, with nice early berry flavor development. This block will likely begin the harvest at the Merryvale facility in St. Helena, and we also anticipate harvesting this near Labor Day.
Harvest has begun at a nice pace, with moderate weather. The forecast is for some warming this weekend, and then a return to average temperatures next week. Harvest will really kick into full gear for us after Labor Day, as we currently have Chardonnay, Pinot noir, Merlot and even some Cabernet between 20 and 23 Brix.
Cheers!
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment