Published August 21, 2025
This story first appeared in our subscriber email. View previous campaigns and join the list!
Click here to watch the video.
As the grapes begin to turn purple, we know that harvest time is just around the corner. Through most of the summer, the clusters on our vines consist of small green berries the size of ball bearings, and almost as hard. In mid-to-late August, they turn color and begin to ripen rapidly, adding sweetness and flavor with each passing week. We use the French term Veraison (“verr-ray-zohn”) to refer to this period of the growing season.
Once the color change is complete, we’ll begin taking weekly samples to track the ripening process. Our thirty years of experience tending these vineyards help us prepare for harvest, but we also know to expect some surprises each year. This year we will be harvesting the young vineyard in front of the winery for the first time. Young vines are notorious for ripening rapidly, so we’ll need to be ready a bit early this year.
It is a lovely time to visit wine country as the vines get heavy with the ripening clusters of purplish-black clusters, and we look forward to welcoming you to the patio at Winter’s Hill Estate.
