Harvest 2018: A Ballet of Mother Nature, Man & Machine

The annual grape harvest is a culmination of all the blood, sweat and sacrifice that is put toward the land each year.  The many months of preparation and painstakingly long hours lead up to this moment where a whirlwind dance of machines and manpower unite to collect the literal fruit of our labor.  While the 2017 harvest was chaotic due to a late-season heat wave that caused a lot of fruit to ripen all at once, 2018 has been quite the opposite.  It has been a very mild and cool summer in Carneros this year and the grapes have been lackadaisical in terms of ripening; which has lead to picking crews having to wait idly by and remain patient for the big show to finally start.  However, now that harvest has officially commenced we shouldn't complain too much as the yields thus far have been outstanding. 

Also, even though believe that each harvest is unique and special in its own way, it is important to point out that the 2018 harvest is noteworthy because it represents the first time that we have ever harvested our fruit with the intention of making our own wine from it.  It is fair to say that we will always consider ourselves farmers above all else, but this is an exciting time as a new chapter of our family legacy is just being written.  Come springtime next year, we will proudly be able to share our very first bottlings of the Ricci Vineyards label with all of you!

Above: Getting mobilized for a night pick.

​To all of you reading this that work in the wine industry, we want to wish you the very best of luck and success with your own harvests this year.  In addition, we want to thank all of the members of our relentlessly hardworking and dedicated vineyard crew...we would cease to be without you rolling up your sleeves and getting your hands dirty on a daily basis.  

Here's to a great rest of harvest and to see the rest of our images from the vineyard, please click here or on the photo in this post.