In the Making

Harvest is a moment of possibility, patience and trust

By Michele Francisco, OWP editor

In cooler vineyards across Oregon, harvest continues.

Crews race through the rows, picking grapes as they go. People are hunched over sorting tables, removing material other than grapes, or MOG, as clusters of fruit roll by. Presses are running and fermentation bins are bubbling.

The air has turned crisp and cool. Visit a winery to smell grape fermentation in progress. To me, that aroma is the true essence of harvest. (Someone please make this into a perfume.)

But it is also exciting to witness a busy cellar: hoses snaking everywhere, equipment being cleaned, music blasting. People are driving forklifts and standing atop fermentation bins, performing punchdowns in an effort to reintegrate the thick cap of skins and seeds into the juice. It’s controlled chaos at its best. 

Yet nobody knows how it ends.

That’s the part of harvest I find most interesting. Every decision made in the vineyard over the past year culminates in something that hasn’t yet declared itself. The wine is a work in progress. The vintage is still writing its story.

I’ve been pondering that uncertainty a lot lately. Our winegrowing pioneers planted grape varieties they hoped would ripen. While building their businesses, they also created an industry. None of them knew exactly how it would turn out. But they had determination.

That spirit remains alive today. Younger generations continue embracing experimentation and that sense of the unknown. It can be uncomfortable– but it’s equally exhilarating.

Whether nearly ready for harvest or already picked, today’s grapes are tomorrow’s wine. Work in the cellar has begun and each wine is still finding what it wants to be. That takes time. It requires patience and a willingness to trust.

Harvest isn’t finished. The vintage isn’t written. Neither, in the best possible way, are any of us.

Michele Francisco spent her childhood reading and writing, eventually graduating from UCLA with an English degree. She attended graphic design school and began a career in design and marketing. After moving to Oregon in 2010, Michele studied wine at Chemeketa Community College and began Winerabble, a Northwest-focused wine blog. She has been a cheerleader for Oregon wine since her arrival.