That’s a good question!  It’s the question that I ask every year.  And even with my 21 years of harvest experience in the Finger Lakes, I always get a different answer.

There are some new, neat things happening this year at Red Newt.  We have started harvest *very* early this year with our first picking on the first of September.  This picking wasn’t for wine it was for “Verjooz”.  What is “verjooz” you might ask?  Verjooz is our version of verjuice (or verjus) which is grape juice made from very early picked grapes.  It is very tart, like lemon juice, and very flavorful.  It makes a great component of salad dressings, marinades, and sauces.  In many situations where you might use lemon juice or vinegar you can use Verjooz to make a delicious wine friendly dish.  Debra will be working with Verjooz in the kitchen and posting recipes and videos soon.  Check it out at verjooz.com

The other question of the hour is “What is this harvest going to bring?”.  That is a good question without a clear answer.  I’ve been reading predictions of the harvest lately, made by various folks that espouse such wisdom of the future.  The fact is that, when trying to predict the outcome of harvest in a cool, variable growing region  months before a grape is picked, there are no guarantees.  If you feel absolutely compelled to feel that you know the future, try calling one of the handful of winemakers in the Finger Lakes who has been watching weather come and go around harvest for the past 20-30 years.  Their crystal balls are shinier than most.

The weather in the Finger Lakes continues to be just about perfect.  In the 70′s and sunny during the day and in the 50′s at night.  Great ripening weather.  It is really starting to feel like harvest.  This weekend I’ll be making my first “baseline” harvest assessment of the vineyards  I’ll let you know what I find.

Cheers!

David.