Sept 30th, 1999
Everything is ripe at once! Some unseasonably warm weather has pushed all of the sugar readings up very quickly. You can see for yourself in the sample results below. The most extreme example is in the Zinfandel. It gained 5% sugar in just 6 days! This would have taken 2 and a half weeks under more normal conditions! In the space of just a few days (starting from Sept 29) we will have harvested almost all of our Estate vineyard.
Sugar sample results (from 9-24-99)
Block.................................................Sugar(Brix)......pH.......est date to pick
Merlot, Hill Block________________23.0________N/A_____(pick 9-29)
Cabernet Sauvignon, House Block___22.1________3.32_____9-30-99
Zinfandel, House Block____________21.4________3.16____10-4-99
Sample results from 9-30-99
Zinfandel, House Block___________26+_________3.25____10-1-99
Cabernet Sauvignon, House Block___24.6________3.40____10-1-99
Cabernet Sauvignon, Hill Block_____23.3________3.20____10-3-99
Merlot, House Block_____________23.6________3.45____10-3-99
We will keep you posted as things progress but this harvest looks like it is going to move at a very quick pace!
10-26-99
This month has been quite busy, especially in the first week. Our Estate grapes were harvested between 9-29 and 10-8-99. At this point we are still waiting on some late season grapes from a couple of vineyards on the east side of the Napa Valley. The weather is cooling down and I am projecting that by Nov 15th we will be done with harvest completely. Most varietals are slightly down in quantity but colors look better that 1998 in a number of the different lots. They are very young wines though so only time will tell.