Melissa Stackhouse
The
2011 harvest can be summarized as a tale of two harvests: the harvest before the rain and the one after
the rain.
The
harvest began on August 22, with our first pick of Pinot Noir for sparkling wine. The entire
sparkling wine harvest went smoothly. There were no dramatic weather events,
and the fruit benefited from cool morning fog and warm afternoon sunshine. From a winemaking perspective, calling
picks in the field was straightforward. A
typical harvest day for the winemaking team began in the vineyard, walking the
rows, tasting fruit, surveying the vines’ health. While assessing maturity of
the sparkling fruit, we also monitored the grapes for our varietal wines: Pinot
Gris, Pinot Noir, and
Chardonnay. The sparkling fermentations were incredibly aromatic and yielded
very high-quality base wine. The team is impressed with the sparkling vintage,
and eager to blend this year’s Cuvée 20 and Brut Rosé.
As
we progressed through harvest, the Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir began making their
entrance. Quality was spectacular for
these varieties. I was particularly excited about the Pinot Noir that we source
from J’s estate vineyards within the Russian
River Valley. One vineyard in particular, Bow Tie, was
most compelling. Located on Westside
Road on the outskirts of Healdsburg, it is a warmer, cool-climate vineyard, the
makings of a world-class site. The fruit did not disappoint, nor have the wines
that are presently aging in barrel.
Bow Tie Vineyard
Most
winemakers hit a certain point in harvest when watching the forecast becomes an
hourly event. It is quite common in Northern California to receive early autumn
rains. And this year was no different. Most of our fruit was in the winery prior
to any heavy rain, with the exception of Chardonnay. This is a varietal that is early to break bud,
but late to ripen.
Jewell Ranch Vineyard & Russian River Valley Estate Chardonnays
The first batches of
Chardonnay were somewhat low in sugar but we did get well-developed flavors. Then came the rains and with them botrytis.
Unfortunately, we had to leave one vineyard unpicked. The result is a significantly small crop of
Chardonnay from this vintage; but, what we were able to get in before the rains
should result in some racy and flavorful wines.
I am looking forward to tasting it as the blend develops.
