Napa Valley harvest report: High hopes for 2024 crop (2024)

Save for some Sauvignon Blanc and grapes for sparking wine, most of the 2024 vintage is still maturing in the Napa Valley's vineyards.

Growers in most of Napa County are still waiting on veraison, the stage in which red varietals change from green to red. With harvest still weeks away for reds, many growers are green-thinning — trimming away slow-ripening or irregular grape clusters so the vines can devote their energy only to the most perfect clusters.

Growers are optimistic about quality and seem unfazed by the heat waves of early summer.

"The intense heat experienced in July, for most, applied a fine dose of stress when the fruit was most protected by the leaf canopies and may very well provide a phenolic intensity in this year’s crop that doesn’t materialize often," said Yountville correspondent Louis Kapscandy of Kapcsandy Family Winery.

Here is the first harvest report of 2024, organized by American Viticultural Area.

Calistoga

Matt Crafton, Chateau Montelena —“And we’re off! Harvest has officially begun in Calistoga with a few select Sauvignon Blanc vineyards getting the call this week. Elsewhere, we’re enjoying the perfect ripening weather that arrived just as color appeared in the Bordelaise varieties. The early-season heat that pushed through the valley in July, after fruit set, has kept berries small with ripening progressing quite uniformly. It will be interesting to see how quickly sugars and flavors move under these ideal conditions. There’s certainly plenty of optimism to go around at this point in the season.”

Diamond Mountain District

Bill Dyer, Dyer Vineyards — “Diamond Mountain District Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards are in a range of stages of veraison depending on elevation and aspect. As this variety is the main focus in the Diamond Mountain District, there will likely be no harvest activities for six weeks or so. Many wineries are focused on bottling to free up tanks for the coming vintage, while others are getting in pre-harvest vacations. In the vineyards a primary activity is removing clusters that have yet to develop color, often called green-thinning, directed at achieving even ripeness at harvest.”

Howell Mountain

Laura Barrett, Clif Family Winery — “Cabernet on the warmer side of Howell Mountain is just finishing veraison and final green thinning passes are happening this week. The cooler locations on the mountain are still progressing through veraison. After a wet winter, we had strong canopy development followed by great set. It was these lush canopies that helped mitigate vine stress during the July heat. Yields look to be right on target and we’ve had a warm summer for steady berry growth and development. It’s shaping up to be a promising harvest season!”

Chiles Valley District

Alexander Eisele, Volker Eisele Family Estate — “A well-distributed rainy season which brought the Chiles Valley District 32 inches filled the reservoirs and gave us the moisture for a successful growing season. This week we are seeing daytime temperatures in the upper 80s with nighttime temperatures in the low to mid-50s. Canopies look healthy and vigorous. At this point yields look to be about average. The excitement of harvest is right around the corner, with the first Sauvignon Blanc to be picked within the next week or two.”

Spring Mountain District

Stuart Smith, Smith-Madrone Winery — “It looks to me that harvest on Spring Mountain is at least two-plus weeks away. This is based on our Chardonnay being on the bottom side of 20 degrees Brix. With two years of abundant rainfall stored in the soil, the vines weathered the hot spells amazingly well. Even our completely dry-farmed vines showed little stress. There seemed to be an overabundance of leaves this year, which required additional work to open up the canopies. The crop level with the Chardonnay looks very good as do the reds. So far, so good.”

St. Helena

Tom Rinaldi, Patent Wines — “Second week of August: Reds are almost fully past veraison (green to red), and the couple of weeks after we were provided opportunities to “green harvest,” and drop green fruit that would not catch up to the mass; and would be acidic and less sweet. Tony Biagi calls it '2018 again.' September weather will tell us if the Cabernet is a 'repeat.' Autumnal equinox picking for the red with a lighter weight, therefore a smaller harvest, since the clusters are not sizing up and the heat has driven off water. Great potential. The whites, particularly Sauvignon Blanc, are ready to be picked by mid-month. Tart now, but sweetening up, and they are delicious, with incredible potential. It appears we have a bumper crop with the whites.”

Rutherford

Kristin Belair, Honig Vineyard & Winery — “One would think that after several decades of this business, that one would entirely escape any enthusiasm toward the upcoming harvest. Apparently not! After a few weeks of sampling vineyards, we are eagerly looking forward to the first fruit arriving at Honig on Tuesday, Aug. 12. The weather, having cooled back down to more normal temperatures, is perfect and we expect to be jumping in at a nice steady pace. What a fabulous way to start the season. Around the neighborhood, Sara Fowler, VP of winemaking and operations at Peju Winery and Calmere Estate, was quite excited to see her first fruit of the season arrive last Tuesday, Aug. 5 at a perfect 23.4 Brix and tasting delicious. We are all just getting started at what has the potential to be a stellar vintage! Stay tuned!”

Oakville

Jennifer Rue, Oakville Ranch Vineyards — "A few calls to pals around the Oakville AVA revealed an early list of themes for the 2024 harvest. On timing, earlier bud break and season — long warmer temperatures have blocks tracking two to three weeks ahead of last year’s late start. Groth begins sugar sampling in their early Sauvignon Blanc blocks this week and expects their first pick by the end of August. At Oakville Ranch bets are placed for Aug. 24 or 28 for our Chardonnay, putting us just a few days ahead of average. In the field, most attention is being focused on the reds, which are getting their final green drop as they finish veraison."

Yountville

Louis Kapcsandy Jr., Kapcsandy Family Winery — “The recent glorious weather, with afternoon highs in the high 80s and cool mornings in the mid-50s, are allowing the vines to complete veraison at an optimal pace. Most growers in and around Yountville are anticipating yields to come in around 15% less than 2023. Berry cluster weights are promising, the result of steady weather during flowering in mid- to late May. The intense heat experienced in July, for most, applied a fine dose of stress when the fruit was most protected by the leaf canopies and may very well provide a phenolic intensity in this year’s crop that doesn’t materialize often. All of this positivity is countered by the economic realities everyone is facing, and production management is discussed at every event. One absolute certainty is that, as far as the grapes are concerned, if August and early September temperatures remain comfortable, another fine to excellent vintage is within our grasp.”

Atlas Peak

Igor Sill, Sill Family Vineyards — “The first week of August's sunlight and warm temperatures brought notable physiological change: veraison, with each berry’s sugars naturally starting to accumulate and changing their colors from green to red. I assess our 1,250-foot-altitude Atlas Peak vineyard as 35% veraison. This is one of the most important phases in our grapevines' lifecycle. Earlier this past week, I palissaged our canopies to allow more photosynthesis to set in, which should result in better berry ripening. The night’s chill temperatures keep the berries’ acids from dissipating completely. This is one of the many reasons why Atlas Peak is such an ideal place to farm exceptionally perfect grapes. Our next step in the vineyard will be a painful one for me personally: green harvesting. Green harvesting is where we thin out several of our vines’ “less-than-perfect grape clusters” by dropping unripe bunches that may not be developing in an even or perfect pattern. This is one of many vineyard tasks we use to ensure that only a few “perfect” clusters per vine receive their critical growth energies at this later stage. Though we purposely reduce the yield to only half the amount of grapes per acre compared to other vineyards, the remaining fruit is as close to flawless as one can get.”

Stags Leap District

Elizabeth Vianna, Chimney Rock Winery — “Things are quiet in the Stags Leap District on the harvest front. Elias Fernandez, winemaker at Shafer Vineyards, was still observing veraison in his vineyards and finishing up this week. Then it's 'wait and see.' Josh Widaman, winemaker at Pine Ridge Vineyards, was all set with harvest supplies and interns starting soon. His prediction was, 'SLD fruit at least 45 days out.' Our neighbor winemaker at Clos du Val, Carmel Greenberg, is set with harvest supplies ordered, still going through veraison, with harvest interns starting Monday. Pre-harvest cleanup starting this week and no expectation for SLD fruit until mid- to late September. At Chimney Rock, we are also still going through veraison and starting to clean equipment before harvest. All our barrels are in, and the waiting game is on. It has been a warm summer so far and the expectations are for an earlier harvest than last year.”

Oak Knoll District

Tony Baldini, Trefethen Family Vineyards — "Ample rainfall supported great canopy development throughout the growing season, which helped mitigate heat stress in July. We are grateful for more mild temperatures over the past few weeks to allow for nice flavor development. The cooler nights have kept acidities sharp and fresh. Clif Family harvested their first early pick of Sauvignon Blanc on Tuesday. Trefethen Vineyards will begin picking Pinot Noir for Rosé on Thursday. This is about three weeks later than last year."

Carneros

Christopher Hyde, Hyde Vineyards— "Harvest is quickly approaching in Carneros as veraison is well underway in Pinot Noir and Chardonnay at Hyde Vineyards. We anticipate our first harvest for sparkling grapes the last week of August."

For real-time harvest photos and updates, visit the Napa Valley Vintners’ Harvest 2024 website at harvestnapa.com.