From the category archives:

Harvest 2009

2009 Napa Valley harvest: finished with Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir in Oakville

Earlier this week Robert Mondavi Winery hosted its 43rd annual ‘Blessing of the Grapes’ ceremony in Oakville.
The ceremony provides a chance to “…pause in the otherwise hectic pace of harvest, allowing winery staff to acknowledge one another and the turning of yet another season.”
Along with the ceremony, the winery also provided a quick [...]

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2009 Napa Valley harvest: an already slow harvest delayed further by Mother Nature

This past week has been an interesting one from a weather standpoint. Following a few days of hot weather, the weekend brought us a bit of rain, a lot of clouds and an overall sense that Summer is rapidly giving way to Fall.
Read on to learn what our three local wineries, Smith-Madrone, Swanson Vineyards and [...]

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2009 Napa Valley harvest: white grape crop heavier than normal with very high acidity, still waiting on reds

Another week is already half-over, which means it’s time to check-in with our three local vintners to see how (or shall we say if?) the 2009 harvest is coming along (others in the valley are much further along).
In the early mornings we’ve certainly noticed the sweet smell of fermenting grapes hanging in the air.
Read [...]

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2009 Napa Valley harvest: from shatter to the healthiest, tastiest fruit in the past six years

Following a substantial heatwave this past weekend, you’d expect harvest to be kicking into gear by now.
Let’s check in with our three contributing vintners to see how things have progressed since last week’s update…
Smith-Madrone
Up first is managing general partner Stu Smith, who last week noted the harvest on Spring Mountain remained behind schedule due [...]

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2009 Napa Valley harvest: the coolest Spring and Summer anyone can remember on Spring Mountain

In checking in with our three local vintners to see how harvest was going we learned that in most cases, it isn’t.
Aside from the crew at Swanson Vineyards in Oakville, our other vintners continue to play the waiting game–as most of their fruit has yet to reach optimal levels.
Read on for this week’s report.
Swanson [...]

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2009 Napa Valley harvest: large clusters, small berry size, compact veraison period

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As promised, our three local vintners have checked-in with their first round of updates on the 2009 Napa Valley harvest.
As you’ll read below, things are just beginning to pick-up in the vineyards, particularly for those wineries working with mountain fruit. If all goes according to plan, by this time next week harvest will be [...]

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What do Smith-Madrone, Swanson Vineyards and Piña Napa Valley have in common?

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The answer is simple.
Today we’re very excited to announce that St. Helena’s Smith-Madrone, Oakville’s Swanson Vineyards and Rutherford’s Piña Napa Valley have all gracefully agreed to share details of their 2009 harvest with us on a weekly basis.

Given the regional variations among these three wineries, not to mention their differing strategies and approaches, we [...]

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