2009 Napa Valley Vintage

Napa came into 2009 off a wet spring. Growers quoted in the Napa Valley Register's August 27 harvest report said the season had been fantastic and credited the late spring rains with bolstering the vines. The rain did not stop there. Decanter reported that an early June storm dropped roughly 12 centimeters, about 4.7 inches, right through the critical fruit-set window, and that the timing cost growers fruit. Shatter and uneven set followed in many vineyards, though the damage was patchy rather than valley-wide. Frost, at least, stayed out of the story. Wine Spectator noted that Napa Pinot Noir had none of the hard spring frost troubles it had seen in 2008, a year when frost cut the crop by nearly half. Summer settled into what Wine Spectator described as mild, steady weather, and the early varieties came in at optimal ripening levels on the back of it. Late September then turned strange. Growers quoted in the Register's October 8 report described temperatures above 100 degrees on September 26 followed by freezing conditions within days. Volker Eisele Vineyards in the Chiles Valley District put numbers on it: 100 degrees on September 26 and 30 degrees on October 3, with no damage to the vines, only to the tomatoes. The pace of the year ran late throughout. By August 27 most growers were still in a waiting game, with Schramsberg having opened the Calistoga-area crush on August 18 and the whole calendar running a week to 10 days behind 2008. A buyer sourcing fruit across the valley told Decanter it was the latest start to harvest in the past 30 years.

• Wet spring, with growers crediting late spring rains for bolstering the vines
• An early June storm of roughly 12 centimeters hit during fruit set and left shatter and fruit loss in many vineyards, per Decanter
• Wine Spectator reported no hard spring frost troubles for Napa Pinot Noir, in contrast to 2008
• Mild, steady summer weather brought the early whites and Carneros Pinot Noir in at optimal ripeness
• A late-September swing took the valley above 100 degrees on September 26 and down to 30 degrees at Chiles Valley by October 3
• Schramsberg opened the Calistoga-area crush on August 18, with the season running a week to 10 days behind 2008

Wine Spectator reported that Cabernet Sauvignon had ideal growing conditions until October, when a pair of strong storms dumped enough rain to worry growers. The first landed in the October 3 to 6 window and left about 3.8 centimeters, according to Decanter, with the usual attendant fears of rot, mildew and dilution. Rot was understood to be a bigger threat to thin-skinned varieties like Chardonnay than to thicker-skinned Cabernet Sauvignon. Another storm arrived around October 15 and soaked Northern California, Napa included. What followed was a scramble. Beaulieu Vineyard in Rutherford described a big weekend to catch up between one week's rain and the next storm the following Monday, with a projected warm, dry forecast prompting a concentrated push to harvest all the remaining fruit. At Flora Springs in Oakville, a vineyard manager tallied four inches of rain for the month, the most since 1982 to 1983, with Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot still on the vine because of it. Whitehall Lane in St. Helena added staff to the sorting table to inspect clusters for mold. Some wineries expected to be harvesting well past Halloween.

• Wine Spectator reported ideal conditions for Cabernet Sauvignon until a pair of strong October storms
• Decanter put about 3.8 centimeters of rain in the October 3 to 6 window, with rot, mildew and dilution the stated concerns
• Rot was flagged as more of a threat to thin-skinned Chardonnay than to thicker-skinned Cabernet Sauvignon
• Flora Springs in Oakville recorded four inches of October rain, the most since 1982 to 1983
• Beaulieu Vineyard in Rutherford described a concentrated push to pick everything left between storms
• Whitehall Lane in St. Helena added sorting-table staff to check clusters for mold

The storms split the valley into two camps, and according to Wine Spectator the split showed up in the glass. Winemakers who picked before the October rain were pleased with the color, flavor, acids and tannins in their young Cabernet. Those who waited had mixed results, and some picked up mold on clusters that had to be dropped. Not everyone who waited regretted it. Chuck Wagner of Caymus in Rutherford, working his 38th harvest, held 80 percent of his crop through both October storms rather than pick early. By October 29 the Register reported general agreement among growers that the mid-October rains had complicated the harvest but that it was well worth all the work, with fruit that came in after the rain showing good maturity, slightly lower sugars and a need for more sorting.

• Wine Spectator reported that winemakers who picked before the October rain were pleased with color, flavor, acids and tannins
• Those who waited saw mixed results, with some clusters picking up mold that had to be dropped
• Chuck Wagner of Caymus in Rutherford, in his 38th harvest, held 80 percent of his crop through both storms
• Growers interviewed on October 29 agreed the rains complicated harvest but that the extra work was worth it
• Post-rain fruit showed good maturity with slightly lower sugars and required more sorting