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A Peak Into The 2022 Wine Harvest By Kirtana Angara & Eric Gennaro
Harvests have always been a time of celebration. Grape harvests are a part of many cultural traditions with week-long celebrations that involve grape stomping, parades and buffets of local fare to savour. It is a great opportunity to enjoy a country’s wine and food culture. This is a magical time of year as every region is bustling with energy and the hope of a successful vintage. Not only is it a time for hard work but also a time to share stories and vinous folklore of the past. In Italy’s famous Piedmont region for example, some old school vineyard hands insist on harvesting later in the day as it is believed that no one can resist eating a glistening grape in the early morning dew. These rules can change from country to country from region to region and from neighbour to neighbour.
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What does the Wine Harvest Entail?
Harvest entails spending time in the sun or racing against time if rain is expected, assessing bunches to cut and ones to leave, carrying baskets of fruit, loading trucks, receiving, sorting, cleaning and in some cases de-stemming. This is peak activity time in the vineyard and winery and many factors come into play to ensure the harvest is completed successfully.
How To Harvest?
Manual harvest or mechanical harvest? Style of wine, manpower availability and, most importantly, topography of the region determine if mechanical harvest can be possible. For example, in the Priorat region of northeastern Spain is one where grapes can only be harvested manually. The vineyards are extremely steep and the terraces are very narrow. Only the sure footed harvesters who are familiar with the land can work these vines as noted by Esther Vicent of Cesca Vicent.
Grape ripeness and maturity leads the list for every winemaker. The chemical and physical maturity of the grape are key indicators and will help guide the wine-making process. Depending on their approach, some winemakers taste the grapes to check their ripeness in addition to looking at lab results. Weather patterns, rainfall, frost, hail, and temperatures (and wildfires) can have significant impacts on berry quality. At every step, work in the vineyard is adapting to negate the bad and maintain and support the vines in every way.On the steep slopes of Priorat not only was it difficult to manage the vineyards in the heat in 2022, but also deciding when to harvest the different grape varieties. There are five grown on the estate. “Due to the high temperature we had in July and August, the harvest started quite early”, said Ester Vicent. Syrah begun on August 18 and the Cabernet had been completed by September 21. Thankfully, there was some relief, a light and refreshing rainfall towards the end of the harvest.”
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To produce Cesca red, all grapes come from the single estate ‘Mas d’en Corral’ which has 30 year old vines. Most of the estate is south-east facing on narrow terraces with good sun exposure. Harvest is completed when the grape variety has reached the correct level of phenolic ripeness; grapes are carefully selected and hand-harvested from small plots producing very low yields.
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Across the way, in the spiraling hillsides of Montalcino in Tuscany, Mauro Biliorsi of Il Fornacina, only has to worry about one grape, Sangiovese Grosso for his Brunello. This year’s harvest was a great success. “We had a very dry summer with no rain at all. This caused water stress for both the vines and the grapes, but caused the total absence of disease.” Like in Priorat, relief came in the form of August rain which led to balanced ripeness. The result is a year of high quality as well as good quantity.
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The grapes are harvested in the fall, between September and October, once they have reached optimal ripeness. At the winery, grapes are vinified in stainless steel vats at controlled temperatures. The seeds and skins are then left in contact with the juice for an extended period of maceration; with periodic pump-overs.
Following malolactic fermentation, the wine is aged in oak barrels for a period of 36 months. Once bottled, the wine is left to further aged and is released to the market on the 6th year after harvest.
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How does Harvest affect buying wine?
With the recent weather and economic events, countries around the world have seen hail, frost, wildfires, periods of drought and stress on manpower and supply. This can mean affect consumer choices in many ways:- Small harvest = less of the wine being made. This means increased demand and higher prices.
- Global supply challenges and shortage of packaging materials have caused fewer choice and increased demand which has translated to higher prices.
- Increased production costs, namely labour and fuel, have also contributed to price pressure.
- Quality and style: Warmer years usually result in more fruit character and higher alcohol levels in wines. The winemaking style of individual wineries will decide if these are wines you want to cellar or drink.
2022 Harvest in a nutshell:
With record high temperatures this year, most wine regions in Europe have harvested earlier than normal. Parts of Italy, France and Spain started in July to avoid crop damage from the drought-like conditions. New plantings have suffered due to their shallow roots while the old vines have faired much better. Napa and Sonoma began harvesting early as well, with some vineyards announcing a small but high-quality harvest. More will be known as we reach the end of harvest later this month. While the weather forecast is still somewhat uncertain there is at least a 100% chance of wine!
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