Chardonnay harvest is underway in the Willamette Valley.
Living in the Pacific Northwest, I think of 2024 as a relatively steady, somewhat cool summer, with a few hot days but no notable anomalies.
I recognise that the weather where I live in Seattle is a bit different than that they receive in the Willamette Valley, and vastly different than that on the eastern side of Washington State, where it has been a very hot summer almost the whole time.
Checking in with winemakers throughout the region has revealed an interesting tale of two growing seasons: a long, steady, warm summer in Oregon and a steady, hot one in Washington State.
Washington
On Red Mountain, third-generation JJ Williams of Kiona Vineyards has seen the warm temperatures finally starting to cool down.
‘Sauvignon Blanc is always our first pick,’ Williams said. ‘And that was 5 September this year. 2024 feels like a 2.0 version of 2021 (considered a hot year). Fruit quality is high, and daytime temperatures have started to cool over the last week, so things are progressing at a nice, gradual pace.
‘The skies are always clear and sunny on Red Mountain, but the lower temperatures have been lovely for the fruit and our crew. This is the first full vintage under the care of our vineyard manager, Javier Ponce. He has worked closely with (and taken over from) Scott, my father, and his 50 years of Red Mountain experience.’
Things on Red Mountain will start wrapping up soon.
‘We’re not planning to do an ice wine this year; instead, we are allocating all of our Estate Chenin Blanc to our Columbia Valley Old Vine Chenin, which changes our timeline,’ Williams said.
‘Usually, our harvest end depends on when it freezes, and we never know. This year, our last blocks will be picked by mid-October. Our old-vine “1975 Old Block” on the estate came in on 14 October last year, and we think it will be close to that.’
On the far eastern side of Washington State, Kelsey Albro Itämeri is owner and winemaker at itä wines in the Walla Walla Valley, focusing on wines from the eastern foothills of the Blue Mountains.
She brings a restrained style that matches the moderation and finesse of the higher-elevation sites she works with.
‘We picked our first fruit, Sémillon, from Les Collines Vineyard on 28 August,’ Albro Itämeri shared.
‘We’re already almost all in (as of 17 September) with just Primitivo for rosé hanging, which we’ll pick by 23 September, and then half a ton of Petit Verdot that is always our last one in – it gets blended into our Merlot. We might pick that in October, but it is absolutely within the realm of possibility that we’ll be done picking by the end of September.
‘I’m really excited about the quality of the fruit this year. As an acid head, this year has been turning out to be my dream. There are lovely flavours with lots of snappy acidity to balance out. Malic acid levels are also pretty high, meaning that with the red wines, we’ll have the opportunity to soften that, especially by going through full or partial malolactic, depending on how things taste.’
Brad Sorensen is the viticulturist at Les Collines Vineyard, one of Walla Walla’s famed vineyard sites. ‘We were relieved that after a very warm summer, temperatures came down as we started harvest,’ Sorenson said.
‘It allows flavours to continue to develop as sugar accumulation slows down. The quality of the fruit looks excellent this year, with almost no issues with disease or damage from the sun or heat.’
The morning view at Adelsheim Vineyard. Credit: Adelsheim Vineyard
Oregon’s Willamette Valley
Gina Hennen is the director of winemaking and viticulture at Adelsheim Vineyard, a Willamette Valley legacy winery founded by living legend David Adelsheim.
‘So far, this vintage has been absolutely dreamy,’ Hennen said. ‘We’ve had highs in the low to mid-70s and mostly sunny skies for the last few weeks. Because of those conditions, we are seeing a glacially slow pace of ripening, and sugar accumulation is happening much slower than our “new normal”.
‘That means we can get longer hang time for enhanced flavour development without the typical compromise of losing acid or creating too much potential alcohol. Over the last week, we’ve been rather casually picking Chardonnay and our earlier ripening Pinot Noir.
‘The weather outlook suggests more of the same in the coming weeks, so we’re happy to keep picking slowly as our estate vineyards gradually move into the ripening window. At this stage, my biggest concern is keeping our harvest interns busy, but that’s a luxurious problem to have.’
Jessica Mozeico, of Et Fille Wines, said: ‘The mid-September cooling in the Willamette Valley has been a complete gift. Up until the beginning of September, we were trending above the Growing Degree Days (GDD) average of the last 30 years.
‘That worried me because if it continued the warm weather would have increased sugar levels, and that could have necessitated harvesting before phenolic ripeness and flavour development were ready.
‘Temperatures dipping into the 50s (10°C) at night and peaking in the 70s (21°C) have slowed sugar ripening, and we’re letting phenolics and flavours catch up. Cool and dry conditions in late September and into October that allow hanging time maturation are ideal.’
Hennen added: ‘Right now, ripening is happening slowly, and acids aren’t dropping quickly. I think the 2024 vintage will be characterised by lovely and vibrant fruit flavours, low alcohol and ample acidity – a classic Willamette Valley vintage worth collecting. This plays right into the Adelsheim style, so I’m definitely looking forward to this year’s wines.’
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