Sunday, September 8, 2013

Time to Harvest Those Grapes and Make That Wine

It's harvest season for vineyards across New York state.

These beauties pictured above are at Thousand Island Winery near Alexandria Bay. The winery owners told me "Our crop is in full bloom and ready for harvest in the end of September. We currently have 10+ acres of vineyards. The grapes we grow are Marquette, Frontenac, Brianna, La Cresent, Mars, and Beta, and more."

According to a report on the grape crop issued Friday by Cornell University, "ripening kicked into high hear this past week, with brix gains ranging from 2 inches to 5 inches and (acidity) dropping by a whopping 3 grams to 6 grams per liter."

The report said ripening is moving so fast on Long Island that some Long Island varieties have caught up or surpassed the 2012 numbers for the same time period.

In the Finger Lakes, the report states harvest is in full swing and moving from variety to variety. There was a scare earlier this week when low temperatures threatened the area.

Grapes for sparkling wines will start being harvested next week, starting with Chardonnay, the report states.

The area is hoping for little rain to be sure to get the harvest in unscathed.

All in all, "the crop is looking very good," said Jim Trezise, president of the New York Wine and Grape Foundation.

Be sure to get out and visit a vineyard and taste some of the great wines made here in New York state.

1 comment:

  1. Yummm. TI Winery grapes are outstanding. Time for a winery tour through the North Country.

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