Harvest  1999  October 12, 1999

Pinot noir and chardonnay yesterday totaled 15 tons, with the final Stoller Vineyards Pinot noir being harvested today. We are exulting in the luxury of waiting half- and full-day increments to get grapes at PERFECT ripeness. Bird and rain pressures are minimal at this stage (knock on wood).

Some in the valley have brought in almost all their crop, making sure they get it in before fall rains, but possibly at reduced ripeness levels. Others are waiting it out and seem to be rewarded for it. We, luckily, can legitimately harvest early at our early-ripening, warmer, and lower elevation sites like Stoller. And then, with great weather like now, wait for ripening at later sites, like Ridgecrest, with longer hangtimes and potentially great complexity.

We have begun to kick off fermentations on last week's
fruit--having macerated 6-7 days.

Early in the harvest we find a need to inoculate with some favorite commercial yeast strains, such as BRG (an imported yeast from Burgundy), 254 and RC212. Ah! Numbers as names, jargon as language. Ain't it fun!

Later, in a very clean year like this, we expect to let most ferments go on indigenous yeast populations (those that come from vineyard and winery).

In addition to Chehalem, Stoller Vineyards sells fruit to Domaine Drouhin, Adelsheim, and Argyle.

Corral Creek Vineyards also sells fruit to others. We're harvesting fruit from Corral Creek today through Friday for other wineries such as Adelsheim, Andrew Rich, Wilridge, Morne, et al. Will be small lots, big wines.

Harry