September 17, 2003
Ready, Set, Harvest!
" I would love to own a winery. It's so
romantic!"
Those words have been uttered by many wine tourists. Picture yourself standing in the tasting room of your favorite winery. You look out the window and see the rolling vineyard land stretching out of your line of vision. The vines are dotted with clusters of grapes. Ah, now that's the life!
"Excuse me, Sir? Ma'am?" calls the tasting room host. Whew, back into reality. Suddenly you see someone step out from behind the vines, bucket in hand, filled with grapes. The worker walks over to a large tote, hands the bucket to another worker, receives a ticket and heads back to the vines with an empty bucket to begin again.
This is the glamour of the wine business. It's harvest time!
Harvest is a wonderful time to get out there and see the action first hand. There is an excitement in the air, a bustle of activity and the smell of grapes. There is a buzz in the air….and I'm not talking about the buzz that comes from the pesky yellow jackets.
Oregon is currently in harvest mode. With the warm, dry summer we have had, the grapes are ready a bit early and are showing great sugar levels. Harvest will continue into October, so there is plenty of time to get out there and take it all in.
What will you see?
Many different types of harvest. At larger wineries you will see many people picking grapes, driving the filled totes on the forklift to the winery, working the sorting table, the de-stemmer and crusher. At small wineries you will see the same activity, but there may only be six or seven people doing all of the work.
Harvest time, for winery owners and workers is long, hard work. The workday often reaches 12-18 hours, seven days a week. The stamina of these folks is unbelievable. After the harvest has ended and the wines take shape, there is great pride in all of that hard work.
Many wineries have vineyard crews who work year round. Most are Mexican immigrants who work the vineyards with great expertise. To watch these men (and some women) in the vineyard is impressive to say the least.
"I sure would like to work for a few days of harvest!"
There are several wineries who would welcome you to assist for a few days. In fact, one vineyard loves wine fans help. Greyhorse Vineyard, near McMinnville, welcomes with enthusiasts to participate in not only harvest, but also vineyard work throughout the year.
A few words of caution while you are touring during harvest time. Be aware of the whereabouts of the equipment. You definitely do not want to walk into the path of the forklift. The equipment can be dangerous, so look, but please do not touch. If you are allergic to bees, be careful - yellow jackets are thick at wineries this time of year.
Be sure to take your camera to catch the action. The color of the grapes, the leaves, the hillsides - beautiful! So get out there, visit your favorite wineries and raise a glass to the harvest workers who make it all happen.
----- KR--------
About Kathy Reese
Kathy Reese began her wine experience
in the early 1980s touring Oregon's wine country “just for fun”.
As her knowledge and love of wine grew, she found herself seeking a career
in the wine industry.
In 1994, she began working part time at Autumn Wind Vineyards (now Patricia
Green Cellars) in Newberg, Ore. She started in the tasting room
and worked up to marketing the Autumn Wind line to local retailers. Kathy
was with winery until 2001. You will still find her in the tasting room on
Memorial Day and Thanksgiving Weekends.
1994 also saw the launch of her own wine tour company, at that time named
Northwest Wine Tours. A year later, when the business expanded, the name
was changed to Adventures
In Wine. The
company conducts wine tours in Oregon and California. Adventures In Wine
also produces winemaker dinners, wine events as well as Riedel Glass Tastings.
They also carry the entire line of Riedel stemware and accessories.
Kathy’s wine experience also includes stints as Wine Steward at both
Lamb’s Marketplace in Troutdale and Fred Meyer Raleigh Hills.