2010 Napa Valley Vintage

The Napa Valley Vintners opened their 2010 harvest report by noting that the vintage welcomed the return of rainfall to the region, with annual precipitation averaging about 20 percent above average and no incident or flooding to go with it. Wine Spectator's account of the same season is blunter: it began cool and wet. The consequence showed up early. By the start of summer, winemakers already knew harvest would be delayed by as much as three weeks. Then came the turn that defined the year. A late-August heat wave pushed temperatures from the mid-70s to 110 degrees or higher in some spots. The timing was the problem. Many growers had already thinned crops and pulled leaves to focus ripening on a late crop, which left clusters exposed exactly when the heat arrived. Celia Welch of Corra and Scarecrow said the blast of heat caused major sunburn and shriveling of exposed clusters. Nicholas Morlet at Showket reported 80 percent of the Cabernet crop lost to the spike. Dave Pramuk of Biale described the one-two punch of a cold summer followed by the sudden August heat as producing some premature raisining of Zinfandel and the unusual situation of heat-damaged and dry clusters sitting among good fruit on the same vine. A Pacific storm brought significant rain in late October as the season wound down. Michael Silacci of Opus One summed the year up for NVV: this was the year of the tiger, and growers had to be on their paws or claws.

• NVV recorded annual precipitation about 20 percent above average with no flooding
• Wine Spectator described a cool, wet start that had winemakers expecting a three-week delay by early summer
• A late-August heat wave took temperatures from the mid-70s to 110 degrees or higher in some spots
• Canopies had already been thinned for a late crop, leaving clusters exposed to the heat
• Showket lost 80 percent of its Cabernet crop to the spike, per winemaker Nicholas Morlet
• Biale's Dave Pramuk reported premature raisining of Zinfandel and damaged clusters mixed with good fruit on the same vine
• A Pacific storm brought significant rain in late October

Because the damage was so dependent on exposure and site, 2010 read differently in every district. By October 7, Elizabeth Vianna of Chimney Rock Winery in the Stags Leap District told the Napa Valley Register that the harvest was officially on, with Merlot coming in at Shafer and Hartwell while Chimney Rock itself was still waiting to start. Vianna's verdict on the year was that it was not for the faint of spirit. At Atlas Peak on the same date, Jan Krupp of Stagecoach Vineyards had Merlot, Chardonnay and Zinfandel coming in with favorable Cabernet flavor development behind them. On Mount Veeder, Brian Nuss of Vinoce Vineyards and Twenty Rows reported Brix at 24 in the lower vineyard with seeds still slightly green. A month later the picture had spread out further. As of November 4, Dawnine Dyer of Dyer Vineyards in the Diamond Mountain District reported that Constant and Sterling were still waiting on the majority of their Cabernet on the upper slopes, leaning on mountain drainage and air movement to keep ripening on track and hold botrytis off, while Schramsberg had only 25 tons left to pick. In the Chiles Valley District, Volker Eisele of Eisele Vineyards declared that the race was over, describing a smaller crop with small berries and good color and sugar levels.

• Stags Leap District: Elizabeth Vianna of Chimney Rock called the harvest officially on as of October 7, with Merlot moving at Shafer and Hartwell
• Atlas Peak: Jan Krupp of Stagecoach Vineyards had Merlot, Chardonnay and Zinfandel in hand with Cabernet flavors developing well
• Mount Veeder: Brian Nuss of Vinoce Vineyards reported 24 Brix in the lower vineyard with seeds still slightly green
• Diamond Mountain District: Dawnine Dyer reported Constant and Sterling still waiting on upper-slope Cabernet as of November 4, with Schramsberg down to 25 tons
• Chiles Valley District: Volker Eisele reported a smaller crop of small berries with good color and sugar levels

What 2010 demanded most was selection. After the August heat spike, growers ran multiple picking passes and worked sorting tables to pull out sunburned and raisined grapes, and some vineyards went unpicked entirely. The arithmetic on volume followed from that. NVV reported tonnage off by as much as 20 percent at some sites, varying site to site across the appellation, with final figures left to the crop report due in spring 2011. Celia Welch framed the whole season as a question of place and management, saying everything depended on the vineyard and the vineyard manager, that vineyards with self-limiting soils and naturally low-producing vines hardly felt the effects of the wet spring, and that vineyards with deep soils and mostly south- or southwest-facing exposures were compromised by both the rains and the heat. Napa Valley Grapegrowers board president David Beckstoffer credited the region's vineyard managers and field crews for handling the swings. By November 4 most vintners reported their deliveries complete, after weeks of crews working around the clock on the final push. NVV board president Bruce Cakebread of Cakebread Cellars said that in the final days of harvest every winemaker he had talked with was thrilled at what they were tasting in the initial stages.

• Multiple picking passes and sorting tables were used to remove sunburned and raisined fruit, and some vineyards went unpicked
• NVV reported tonnage off by as much as 20 percent at some sites, varying widely across the appellation
• Celia Welch attributed the variability to soil, vine vigor and exposure rather than to the valley as a whole
• Most vintners reported deliveries complete by November 4 after weeks of round-the-clock picking
• NVV board president Bruce Cakebread reported winemakers thrilled with early tastings in the final days of harvest