Winemaking 101 :
Harvest Time in the Vineyards
by Kim Engelhardt , President - Wineries of Santa Clara Valley / Owner , Lion Ranch Vineyards & Winery
It ’ s easy to get caught up in our daily lives and busy schedules , disconnecting from what is happening around us , due to the ever present passing of time . Being in the vineyard connects me back to the changing seasons , with the light waning and the temperatures shifting . This connection to growth and harvest is one of my favorite parts of the wine industry , and in essence reflects the rhythms of farming – with a delicious reward in my glass months ( and years ) later .
Grapevines wake up from their winter dormancy in the spring , budding out in March and spending the next few months growing brilliantly green leaves , long canes , reaching tendrils , and the start of grape clusters . Usually by late July the grape clusters start to look more plump and recognizable ( though they came later this year since it seemed like we had winter until summer began !) The grapes ’ colors also begin to change ; the green grapes soften and turn either lighter yellow for the white wine varieties or dark red and purple for the red wine varieties . Once we see the color change we can estimate we have about six weeks until they will be ready for harvesting .
How do we know when the grapes are ripe and ready ?
Vintners look for their definition of perfect ripeness – the balance between brix ( sugar level in the grapes ) and acid . This is one of the many stylistic choices that you ’ ll taste in your glass . Once the grapes are decidedly ripe , the race is on : all of that particular variety needs to be picked as quickly as possible before that perfect ripened fruit becomes overripe . Mother Nature gave us the gift of having each grape variety ripen at slightly different times , meaning some are ready in September ( think Pinot Noir and Chardonnay ), while others may not be ready until later October ( think Merlot and Sangiovese ).
Once the grapes are harvested , or cut off the vines , they go to the winery for processing . At this point there are some pretty standard approaches , as well as a plethora of stylistic choices for the vintner . White grape varieties generally go straight into the wine press where they are squeezed beyond recognition and the juice is put into tanks , barrels , or pottery for fermentation . Red grape varieties may or may not make their way to their
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