From our earliest-ever picks to quick calls before a hurricane, this season kept us on our toes. The fruit we brought in shows incredible promise, and we believe 2024 will be one of the most exceptional vintages we’ve seen yet.
This year’s harvest came in early, thanks to an unusually hot summer and some unexpected drought stress—pretty rare for Virginia! This meant sugar levels rose quickly, so instead of waiting for the sugars to peak, we focused on picking the grapes when their acidity was just right to preserve freshness and balance.
Kicking Off with Costa*
On August 14th, we brought in five tons of Chardonnay for our new traditional method sparkling wine, Costa*. Since sparkling wine requires a second fermentation in the bottle (where more yeast and sugar get added later), we picked the grapes early while their sugar was still low and acidity high. Fun fact: This was our earliest pick ever in the history of the winery.
A Fast-Paced Two Weeks
Right after the sparkling Chardonnay came off the vines, we jumped into harvesting more Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Merlot—moving quickly to stay ahead of the rising sugars. The Merlot will constitute the bulk of three different rosé wines this year, including our Reserve Rosé, which we’re extra excited about. We’ll be trying a new, experimental winemaking method for this one as part of a study with the Winemaker’s Research Exchange.
Petit Manseng and Cabernet Franc: Early Picks
By the first week of September, we had already harvested our Petit Manseng at 26 brix (a measure of sugar) for its own varietal wine. This, along with Cabernet Franc, marked our earliest pick of these grapes in our winery’s history. The Cabernet Franc will be featured in one of our upcoming premium wines, so keep an eye out.
Beating the Storm with Petit Verdot
Usually, Petit Verdot is the last grape we pick, around the end of September or early October. But with hurricane Helene on the horizon, we made the call to bring it in early on September 24th to avoid any rain damage. Timing decisions like these are part of the challenge of winemaking in Virginia’s unpredictable fall weather—better to harvest a little early than lose the crop entirely.
A Promising Vintage
All things considered, 2024 is shaping up to be one of the best vintages we’ve seen in the past decade. We can’t wait to watch these wines develop during fermentation and look forward to bottling them throughout the spring of next year. Stay tuned—something special is on its way!