There comes a time every year when it really feels that harvest is imminent. That happened for me on Saturday August 24th. I was in the vineyard with some guests and Block 3, one of our original blocks, was almost completely through version (color change). We’re a warm site and expect to be early, but for some reason the fact that one of our later ripening blocks was so advanced put me in harvest mode. That was further reinforced on Monday when Robert and I took samples of our Chardonnay at Carabella and the Brix measurement (sugar) was at about 15.5%. Half of that block goes into our sparkling program where we target much lower sugar (and higher acidity) than for our still wines, so we could be picking in a week or so. After that, we’ll have a little break while we wait for the fruit to mature a bit more and by about September 23rd, we’ll be well on our way. So, if you come out to visit us, bring clothing you don’t like very much. You could find yourself on the sorting line.- Bill Sweat, Proprietor
