At some point, many wine lovers find themselves wondering, “How do vineyards harvest grapes?”
Work at a vineyard is seasonal, closely tied to the rhythms of nature. In a world where we seem to order our lives at a total remove from these ancient cycles, winemaking remains a stubborn holdout. The way vineyards harvest grapes, for all of the modern technology that vintners have introduced over the years, is still tethered to the methods pioneered by our ancestors.
Contact Z&M Twisted Vines Vineyard to book an opportunity to participate in this process with our grape-crushing parties.
When Do Vineyards Harvest Grapes?
In the autumn, it’s quite common no matter where you live to see people decorate with gourds and hay bales. Despite the fact that few Americans have any agricultural ties in our time, we still associate fall with harvest.
Somewhere in our collective memory, we seem to have an atavistic understanding of the significance of harvest time.
Wine provides a link to connect us to these perennial natural changes.
Late summer and early fall are the prime wine harvesting months in North America (August, September, and October). This window can shift a bit – either earlier or later – depending on the growing seasons in a particular area. Additional considerations can include the ripeness of the grapes themselves and vintage considerations.
How Do Vineyards Harvest Grapes? First Thing’s First
There is an order in which vineyards harvest their grapes. Here’s a look at which types of grapes they pick first, and why:
- Sparkling White Grapes: Vineyards harvest these first because the longer a grape stays on the vine, the higher the sugar content (think of raisins). By taking the sparkling white grapes off of the vine earlier on, it ensures a lower sugar content.
- White Wine Grapes: These grapes are usually next in the harvesting order, again often due to sugar content.
- Red Wine Grapes: Red wine grapes typically take longer to reach maturation, and so are usually harvested later. Dessert wines, such as ice wines, are harvested even later.
Harvesting Methods
There are two dominant forms of wine harvesting: the traditional hand-harvesting, and mechanical means.
HAND-HARVESTING
Hand-picked grapes are perhaps what we most commonly envision when we speak of how vineyards harvest grapes.
Vineyards may choose to entrust harvesting to actual human beings to provide for intentional, informed selection of grapes, and to prevent skin damage to the grapes.
MECHANICAL HARVESTING
On the other hand, vineyards may prefer mechanical harvesting methods. Mechanization is often more efficient for larger vineyards with flat terrain.
COMBINATION APPROACH
Depending on the desired goal of the winemaker, vineyards may harvest using hand-harvesting, mechanization, or a combination of both methods.
Conditions on the Ground: Potential Impacts on Grape Harvests
As we’ve seen, ripeness conditions can vary depending on the varietal.
Different types of grapes make different types of wines. Accordingly, each varietal needs to be harvested at times specific to them. This is done to ensure a certain level of acidity, as well as tannin or sugar content.
It’s a delicate balance. Each type of grape needs need to be just at the right ripeness; they should not be picked too early or too late.
However, all of these factors are superseded by something beyond anyone’s control – namely, nature.
First of all, there is pest control with which to contend. Fungus, viruses, small animals, and insects can all damage wine crops. Fences, nests, pesticides, herbicides, and plants to attract natural predators of common pests can all protect vines.
There are optimal summer and winter conditions for grape growing. During harvest season, though, the weather needs to be dry.
Of course, storms, hail, excessive heat, and frost can all damage a crop. Because weather is unpredictable, harvest season is sort of a movable feast. It’s not a fixed date on the calendar that happens on the same day each year.
Knowing exactly when to harvest takes knowledgeable, observant vineyard owners and workers.
Technique
Then comes the fun part – once the grapes are harvested, it’s time to make the wine. It’s a fascinating but delicate process. When moving the grapes from the vineyard to the crusher, it is critical to avoid letting the grapes become too warm.
Now, an important note on terminology. You don’t smash grapes. When you crush grapes, you “gently split” them to release their juices in just the right way.
Of course, the popular image of crushing grapes is people merrily stomping on grapes with their bare feet. However, in the 21st century, it’s unlikely that very many wines are produced this way for obvious health and hygiene reasons.
The process is largely automated now, using machines called destemmers, and/or wine presses.
Crush It With Z&M
Z&M is about two things: wine and community. Call us old-fashioned, but some things never go out of style, and we believe wine has the power to bring people together in a unique way.
And we don’t just mean drinking wine. No, we mean the whole process from the very beginning to when it winds up in your glass.
That’s why we’d like to invite you out to our vineyard this harvest season. Gather a group of friends and reach out to us to schedule a grape-crushing party. Participate with people who are special to you in a time-honored ritual.
You can see the winemaking process from its inception and – when everything’s said and done – the fruits of your labor. The best way to answer the question, “How do vineyards harvest grapes?”, is to see for yourself.
With a Z&M grape-crushing party, harvest season will be more than an excuse for decorating your front porch with pumpkins. If you’re ready to join in the harvest-time fun this fall, get in touch.
We love sharing the beauty of our vineyard with visitors, almost as much as we love sharing our wine with them. This fall, come see us at Z&M Twisted Vines Vineyard in Lawrence.