The heat wave that baked northern Santa Barbara County for two weeks has caused wine grapes to mature sooner than usual and pushed the harvest up by a couple of
The minimal rain that fell over the weekend from the remnants of Hurricane Kay off Southern California also had a minimal impact on the grapes, some said.
For some like Peter Stolpman, whose Stolpman Vineyards focuses on syrah in the hot clime of Ballard Canyon, the timing of the heat wave was just right. “If the heat had come two weeks from now, when the grapes were nearly ripe, it would not have been good,” Stolpman said.“We had a solid 10 days of pretty high heat,” said Jim Stollberg of Hampton Farming, which manages vineyards. “So we had 25 days of ripening in 10 days. The challenge for us is getting the fruit to the wineries.”
Stolpman said only trace amounts of rain fell in his area, not enough to cause problems with fungus or even penetrate the surface soil. “Humidity is not conducive to slow ripening,” Koch said, explaining that slow ripening is better for a wine’s flavor and aroma. “The skin has all the aromas and flavors. Many will opt to harvest right now. Some can wait. But to delay can be tricky.”
Amy Christine, a “master of wine” who works for the Santa Barbara Vintners but also owns Holus Bolus Winery, is expecting fruit that will produce just the kind of wine she wants.
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