2024 Napa Valley Vintage

Heavy winter rain saturated soils and laid a foundation for healthy vegetative growth. Matt Stornetta of Stornetta Made Farming called the soil moisture that winter pivotal. Plenty of moisture in the soil at the start of the growing season, plus early rain during it, helped canopy growth, as Pauline Lhote of Chandon described it. That canopy became natural shade for the crop. The season had 38 to 40 days above 100 degrees, a number of hot days winemakers called unusual, against 8 to 10 in 2023. The winter-charged soils and the canopy shade helped the vines endure the heat. Harvest kicked off earlier than in 2023 and was considered more normal in overall timing for a Napa Valley vintage. Sparkling-wine picking ran from early August to early September, with Chandon starting August 2 and finishing September 2. The nights were cold that August, which preserved acidity, and Lhote called it a good vintage for sparkling wines. Still-wine varieties began mid-August and wrapped up by mid-October. Most of the fruit came in at night, with early-morning delivery to the crush pads. Dante West of Amici Cellars called 2024 a classic vintage for Napa Valley, and found it nice to see what many would call “normal” after three very different vintages in a row (2021, 2022 and 2023). Rombauer Vineyards in St. Helena reached its last day of grape pressing. Yields varied across the region, with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay down 10 to 20 percent in some areas while Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon came in average or slightly above.

• Heavy winter rain saturated soils and drove healthy vegetative growth
• The resulting natural shade canopy protected the crop through extended heat from June through harvest
• 38 to 40 days above 100 degrees, against 8 to 10 days in 2023
• Sparkling harvest ran early August to early September; Chandon picked August 2 to September 2 with cold August nights preserving acidity
• Still-wine varieties began mid-August and wrapped up by mid-October; harvest started earlier than in 2023
• Most picking happened at night with early-morning delivery to the crush pads
• Pinot Noir and Chardonnay yields were down 10 to 20 percent in some areas; Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon came in average or slightly above

For winemakers it was a low-stress year, with everything coming in as expected. Richie Allen of Rombauer Vineyards called it a vintage where you did not have to stress as a winemaker, and said he had only had a couple like it in Napa. In Allen’s words, a good harvest is when nothing goes wrong, and while it had been warm, nothing had gone wrong. Alison Rodriguez of Silverado Vineyards described early, quick and easy fermentations with great density of flavors. Diana Snowden of Snowden Vineyards reported high malic acids, high titratable acidities, low pHs and some of the highest sugars she had waited for, and called 2024 the most beautiful vintage she had taken part in. A harvest press release published through Wine Industry Advisor described the vintage as dynamic and rich in flavor, and called it a textbook year for winemaking that was also unusual for its numerous days of heat.

• For winemakers it was a low-stress year, with everything coming in as expected
• Richie Allen of Rombauer Vineyards: a vintage where you did not have to stress as a winemaker
• Alison Rodriguez of Silverado Vineyards reported early, quick and easy fermentations with great density of flavors
• Diana Snowden of Snowden Vineyards reported high malic acids, high titratable acidities, low pHs and some of the highest sugars she had waited for