Huge Harvest Week!

	Sorting Pinot Noir

We're in the middle of Harvest-on-the-run, as vineyard blocks inching along into perfect ripeness have yielded to picking at the same time.

We have harvested 30% of our projected cropload so far, but a week from now we should be 85% done.

So, long hours this week and maximum logistical stress on facility and people. Fruit is not as clean as in the past few vintages, due largely to a long flowering period and, therefore, variable ripeness.

Sorting has done its job to pull underripe fruit prior to destemming. The set difficulty also is reflected in seedless "chicks" in some clusters, which in the heat of summer and subsequent rains of August desiccated or split.

The overall ripeness and acid retention is better on Pinot noir than last year, with good sugars (but not as high as last year), better retained acidity (but only slightly) and good flavors, although they are taking their time revealing themselves.

We're excited and running.  So, this entry is short.  Some photos will fill the space.

Harry

Today we are harvesting our first Pinot gris fruit from Corral Creek, the vineyard that surrounds the winery.