California's wine grape harvest
California's wine grape harvest - which is just about wrapping up - was hard hit by winter frosts and spring and summer heat waves. Some vineyards, according to vintner associations, are seeing up to a 30 percent reduction in crops from last year.
Nick Frey, president of the Sonoma County Winegrape Commission, says growers have been picking at full throttle since the week before Labor Day. "Everything was ready at the same time," says Frey. "There's talk that this is one of the earliest harvests ever," says Lisa Correia, the Sonoma County agricultural commissioner.
Growers say the recent cool front has helped slow down the ripening process, giving them a bit of breathing room. But by mid-October in Sonoma the crush, the process in which the juice is extracted from the grapes, should be completed, says Frey. Usually, winemakers are still crushing at the end of October.
Karen Ross, president of the California Association of Winegrape Growers, says, "the rest of the state seems to be much in the same boat. She says what really wreaked havoc on this year's grape crop were the frosts that hit the state between February and April. "It was devastating to so many areas," she says, "Lake County got hammered and counties like San Benito could be down by 30 percent."
The worst spring cold spell in the last 30 years killed grapevine buds along the North Coast regions, including Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino counties, responsible for some of the state's most highly regarded wines.
Terry Hall, spokes person for the Napa Vintners Association, says in some of his areas they're seeing a 30 percent crop loss. He says the eastern hills were particularly hit-hard. He goes on to say, "And with the heat spike (in early September) people were pulling in Chardonnay and Pinot Noir at the same time." Finally, Hall predicts that Napa Valley overall will see a 5 to 10 percent reduction in its wine grape crop from last year's 145,000 tons. He says, despite the lower-than-hoped-for-yield, vintners are banking on great flavor.
San Francisco Chronicle 9/2008
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