Q&A with our Winemaker about Harvest Season 2023

Q&A with our Winemaker about Harvest Season 2023

For some September means the start of pumpkin spice season... But for us at Adirondack Winery, it is the start of grape harvest season. For our winemaker; Brad Casacci it is one of the busiest times of year for him and his winemaking team. In between crushing grapes, I asked him a few questions about the harvest season so far.

 

How many tons of grapes are we harvesting for this year?

“This year we are expecting 181-195 tons of grapes, or at least that is what we want to receive. So far, in this early part of the harvest, we have only gotten about 60% of what we would typically receive for each type of grape. But we expect to continue this trend through the rest of the harvest. So it will be a lighter year than normal.”

 

What is different from this year's grapes (2022) vs. last (2023)?

“There have been major differences in this year's harvest season as opposed to last years. This is due to the troublesome weather that we’ve been having this year. Bud break started early in the Finger Lakes, where we get our grapes. This started in April, which can be a good thing. However, if we get a frost like we did this past May, that can harm the grapes; killing off the ones that are starting to form. So, that was not conducive to good grape growing this year. As well as opposed to last year's where it was a hot and dry summer right up until it was time to harvest the grapes in September and didn’t stop raining which caused some havoc, this year has been mild temperature and rainy the entire summer and then all of a sudden this past week or so has been very hot, which causes the grapes to not ripen in their normal state.”

 

What's your favorite part of the harvest season?

“I would say the teamwork between myself and everyone that is involved. By completing a huge project in a span of a few weeks; while also creating the best wine that we can.”

 

If you were to give anyone advice on how to harvest their grapes, what would you tell them? 

“My advice for someone who truly wants to make wine at home; First off, if you’re using your grapes, start small to see if the grapes you’ve planted can survive and flourish in the region you’re growing them. As for the wine-making side of it; The most important thing is to have clean and sanitized equipment. As well, take your time and do things the right way. Without these two fundamentals, you are much more likely to create sub-par wine and in the end, this should be a fun experience that results in a wine you made that you will enjoy”