2018
In contrast to the weather extremes of the 2017 harvest, the 2018 vintage saw a season of moderate weather unfold. We were blessed with weeks of mild weather in May, which allowed for good fruit set and generous cluster counts. It had the potential to be an abundant vintage, but we thinned grapes as needed to better balance the vines. Unlike 2017, moderate temperatures reigned supreme without any heat spikes as we entered veraison in July. August followed suit, and we eased in very nicely to a slow and steady harvest. It was a luxury to be able to observe the gradual ripening of Pinots over the course of a few weeks and not feel rushed by any extreme weather conditions.
We began harvesting Chardonnay midway through picking Pinot and saw lively acidity and good flavor development throughout. A cooler September brought us just across the finish line with our Pinots before things slowed down a bit. Almost as if we had two separate harvests, Syrah remained on the vine until deep into October. We had nearly emptied all of our fermenters before we brought in our first Syrah. Coinciding with the later season varietals in October, the old vine Zinfandel was limited in yield as usual, but the moderate growing conditions brought good hangtime and uniformity.
In 2018, we noted particularly good acidity and flavor development at lower potential alcohols, setting the stage for wines to be enjoyed in their youth as well as over the long term.
