Winemaker Wisdom: 2013 Pinot Noir Harvest

We’ve had nothing but terrific growing weather for Pinot Noir this year. It’s common just about every year around Labor Day for us to get a blast of hot weather. This year however the temperatures are taking a dip in to the mid 70’s. This is fantastic for us as we are in the critical last leg of maturity and Pinot Noir thrives in cool weather. This means a little longer hang time as we make the final stretch to build up just the right amount of sugar; flavors and aromas are already intense. We will be harvesting our first Pinot Noir on Wednesday, September 4. Thanks to a diversity of clones, our Pinot Noir harvest will involve about two weeks time. I am very enthusiastic about this year’s crop!

– Gustavo Gonzalez, Mira Winemaker