Harvest at Emeritus begins at midnight, when the temperature in the vineyard has dropped below 50°F., due to the intrusion of the marine layer from the coast into the Russian River Valley. In the cool night air, the grapes have recovered from the daily cycle of maturation and are at their peak quality.
Hand picking naturally chilled clusters preserves their flavors and natural acidity, and reduces oxidation of the juice as the fruit begins its journey into fermentation. Hand sorting at the winery selects only the highest quality grapes and removes leaves, unevenly ripened clusters, and damaged leaving only the highest quality fruit. The clusters are then transferred to small, wooden or stainless steel fermentation vats for cold soaking (which extracts flavors and colors), and subsequent fermentation.
