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Harvest time has come a couple weeks earlier than usual this year in the Santa Cruz region, and winemakers are scrambling in preparation, and with anticipation.
The grapes have ripened slightly faster than in most years, and in many cases the brix level has reached an appropriate stage to begin harvesting. (Brix is a measurement of sugar in the grapes and tells vintners how much alcohol will end up in the finished wine. The ratio is about two to one, so if the grapes measure 24 brix, the wine will end up with about 12% alcohol.)
This is one of my favorite times of year and probably every other winemaker’s out there as well. The rest of the year’s 11 months are slow and monotonous in comparison to this extremely busy four weeks.
If there was ever a time to go wine-tasting, it is now. The wineries are abuzz with winemakers and vintners. You probably won’t get much special attention on account of the craziness, but you will be an eyewitness to the intricacies of winemaking.
Last weekend, every winery I visited was either preparing for harvest or already had tubs full of freshly fermenting grapes. Unlike any other time of year, a wine-tasting excursion now might be accompanied with a taste of fermenting grapes or a look at a destemmer in action.
My wine co-op and I will be traveling south on Sunday to pick cabernet sauvignon, syrah, petite syrah and marsanne to bring back to our winery and crush. Most wineries in the area will go a long way to buy grapes and bring them back for the crush. Many wineries, like ours, will make wines from grapes that they have purchased from all over California.
Take the time to visit a winery this month and get a glimpse of the action. It might even be worth it to call ahead and ask if the wineries you want to visit are crushing right now. For anyone who has a love for vino, this is the time to get involved and experience the harvest we faithfully anticipate every year.
Austin Twohig, who alternates writing this column with Annette Hunt, is a certified sommelier and partner in The Santa Cruz Experience, which conducts winery tours in the Santa Cruz Mountains. He can be contacted at
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