Mosel Harvest 2014 Primer
Just a few hours now until our flight to Germany for harvest at the Mosel. Packed? Clothes, no. Enchilada staples for California night? Yes.
I’s a weird feeling knowing that vineyards you care for half way around the world were in budbreak last time you saw them and are now holding ripe fruit, waiting out the last days of sunshine and are almost ready to be picked. Like a once best friend who you haven’t seen in years, what was he or she like that whole time? What did I miss? The ethereal smell at flowering, exponential shoot growth and delicately tying the shoots to the single posts, and the start of the yellowing leaves, indicating fall is upon us!
Blossoming kicked off in mid May, three weeks earlier than usual according to the German Wine Institute. Winemakers can bet on 100 days after this, their fruit will be ripe, or very close to it. The earlier varietals to ripen include Müller-Thurgau and Silvaner. Riesling and Pinot Blanc (and Noir while we’re at it) follow. After flowering is finished, is a crucial time and the temperature should not dip into the 50s at all to avoid shatter and poor fruit set.
This year, the ‘winzers’ or vignerons have most likely been in good spirits. The weather has been warm, and only light hail fell a couple of days ago. Dr. Loosen even mentioned in his blog that 2014 was shaping up like 2009, a great year at the Mosel. Botrytis is scarce and many wineries are gearing up to start picking on the last days of September or early October.
Other regions are deep into harvest already, such as the Pfalz, which is much warmer.
I can imagine though now that Federweißen is a popular drink to enjoy outside and many wineries serve this with an onion tart. Federweißen is the fermenting must, yeast already active, and so it is sweet and effervescent. Just don’t enjoy too much Federweißen and onion tart with all those onions and active yeast…
Hope to get a couple posts in while we’re there too, so stay tuned for more on the Mosel harvest 2014!
…Until this weekend!
PS – Weather’s lookin’ pretty nice! Harvest-worthy for sure
