July is such a time to be alive and in Wine Country! The sun is shining and the grapes have color in their cheeks. Our vineyard crew is moving through Hallberg Ranch and Pinot Hill, thinning fruit. Our winemaking team (and even our company president) often joins them among the vines to assist and get a hands-on feel for what they’ll be working with in a few months.
Why are we thinning? To ensure that the highest quality grapes possible. We’re optimizing the balance (fruit to vegetative growth) of our vines, encouraging all the resources spent in ripening those grapes to be more concentrated and intense. This also makes it easier to get a precise estimate for our final harvest yield.
After last year’s tumultuous… everything, really, we’ve been blessed with a classic growing season. That alone is cause for excitement. The anticipation is building for a fantastic harvest and an amazing 2021 vintage as we prepare the crush pad and cellar for incoming grapes. In about a month, it will be all hands on deck as grapes head in and start being processed, and we’ll send another update when the action begins!
