Wines I'm Making: 2012 Grapes Still Unmolested (September 10, 2012)

It's been about 10 days since I last reported on the grapes. I'm pleased to be able to say that there have been no losses so far. The nets have held. The electric fence is pulsing away. I'm hoping that the critters don't even know the grapes are there. It's still early, but I've been sampling a random grape here and there. The Cabernet seems to be already at about 19 brix, the Sangiovese at about 20 brix--both higher than I would have thought. I usually aim to harvest at around 24 brix. The rule of thumb is that one degree of brix takes about a week to develop, which would suggest we'll be harvesting a month from now, at about this time in October, but, we'll see. Ongoing vigilance is in order.