Leaves are dropping, temperatures are slowly beginning to decline, and semi trucks with micro bins are on the road – all telltale signs that harvest is here. Harvest is not only the most exciting time of the year for us here at JUSTIN – it’s also the busiest. It’s so easy to get swept up in the romance of the wine industry and forget what goes on behind the scenes. Our winemakers and cellar masters must prepare well in advance to ensure they’re ready for the special, yet challenging, work ahead.

Selecting the most elite candidates for our internship program is one of the first key tasks in preparing for harvest. Each year, we receive several hundred applications from around the world for a harvest internship position. It takes up to six months to finalize our team. Our cellar masters select interns based on experience, drive, and willingness to learn. A harvest intern has a tough job – it requires those willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done, until their departure in December. We’ve selected the best 15 interns we could find for the 2012 vintage here at JUSTIN Vineyards & Winery.

In addition to staffing, sanitation and organization are crucial tasks leading up to harvest. Sanitation is especially important when preparing for incoming fruit. Organization is equally important – it’s essential for us to know where everything is at all times at the winery. If we don’t take the time to sanitize our equipment properly, we won’t be able to create the wines we do each vintage. And if we’re not organized in the cellar, production won’t be as efficient – which is vital for success during such a busy crush season. 

The white varietals tend to be harvested before the reds because we aim to pick the whites at a higher level of acidity. We’re not trying to achieve the highest sugar level possible; instead, we look at the acidity and mouthfeel of the fruit to determine the picking dates. As sugar increases in the berries, acidity decreases, so we tend to harvest the white varietals earlier. The first fruit to arrive this season has been the sauvignon blanc and the estate orange muscat. So far, we’ve received Preston and Buena Vista Sauvignon Blanc, and they’re looking fantastic.

Our goal is to produce the highest-quality wine for our consumers. Among other factors, hand harvesting helps ensure we receive the best fruit possible. We take our time getting the fruit to tank as individual whole berries – something we couldn’t achieve with mechanical harvesting. Handpicking isn’t an easy task in the vineyard, but it results in the best wine we can craft for our fans.

The 2012 harvest has begun earlier than in past years, though there’s a lull right now. We expect a big rush of fruit to arrive at our door over the next few weeks and anticipate wrapping up harvest earlier than usual. If all goes as predicted, we’ll have all our fruit in house by mid-November – just in time to toast to a great 2012 harvest at Thanksgiving dinner.