If you were to ask any winemaker to describe harvest in 10 words or less I’m sure that many would have trouble finding the best words to best recreate what happens during this time of the year. Words like Frenzy, chaotic, madness, stress, jubilation, celebration might float to the top of the list. The truth is that harvest is a ritual, a rite of passage and best described by the individual who endures and experiences it. It is a subjective journey which lasts 2 months (give or take) and is unique to each winery.
At Bergström Wines, Harvest is a family affair and a time to share with the best of friends and colleagues. We take the time to enjoy what is happening around us. Up on the top of Calkins Lane you can see the dust rising from the hazelnut orchards, the fruit trucks hurtling down the highways, the colors changing in the fields, forests and skies, the pumpkins ripening in the garden. It is truly the best time of the year for us.
Today marks the 6 th day of harvest and we are already 120 tons into it. The past day has seen more fruit than we know what to do with. The 2006 vintage can definitely be summed up as abundant. If we could ferment fruit in empty bathtubs…well, we wouldn’t go that far but you get the point. The fruit is extremely ripe with brown seeds, gorgeous flavors and exotic statistics. Funny how Mother Nature compensates for short years. Shea Vineyard is almost all in now, the 828 clone comes in tomorrow and is more than ready. The colors are dark, the berries are dimpled with dehydration and the flavors are extremely exotic. Very impressive stuff. Could be another fantastic year for Shea Vineyard.
Nysa Vineyard was harvested today and looks incredible. Acidities have stayed reasonable with high sugars and intense flavors. As well, 5.7 tons were harvested off of 4 acres which is higher than in past years (1.4 tons per acre vs. 0.4 tons per acre in past years.)
Bergström Vineyard is still hanging with over 120+ days of hangtime since bloom with enormous potential. I am pushing the envelope on the weather with this site this year and will harvest it when the weather threatens to change for the worse. In years like these it is best to tempt fate with patience. We have seen Palmer Creek , Pelos Sandberg and Anderson Family Vineyard come in with fantastic flavors, numbers and appearance. Five tons of de Lancellotti vineyard was harvested this morning. The leaves are yellow and falling out of the fruiting zone. Remaining is the rest of Bergström Vineyard, de Lancellotti Vineyard. Only small amounts of white wine have started to appear at the winery but the bulk of the Chardonnay and Riesling will hang for 1-2 more weeks. Stay tuned.