Oakville, Calif. -- "It's been an exquisite year, the kind you wish for," said Lee Hudson, summing up this year's grapegrowing in Napa Valley. "I'll say it," he continued: "I predict the best harvest in 100 years."

The owner of Hudson Vineyards in Carneros might have been joking with his pronouncement, for as David Beckstoffer said at the Napa Valley Grapegrowers' annual harvest forecast Aug. 6, "I know every year we say it will be a great year." In this case, it might be true. The event was held at the Phillips family's 70-acre Vine Hill Ranch in Oakville in chilly conditions with a few sprinkles.

Conditions in Napa County have been near perfect this year. Growers like Beckstoffer, whose company owns and farms about 1,000 acres in Napa Valley from Carneros to St. Helena, predicted the crop will be about 10% smaller than average, but no one is concerned. The last few years' abundant crops have left overflowing stocks and consequent soft prices, and the growers welcome a bit less fruit on the market. "The smaller crop is great for the industry. We had an oversupply of wine," Beckstoffer admitted.

The year started out with low rainfall--perhaps 18 inches rather than the usual 30 according to Jon Ruel, vineyard manager of the 500 acres of vines at Trefethen Vineyards in Oak Knoll District. This caused some concerns about water supply, but that low rain created three benefits: smaller berries, less vegetation and ironically, less need for water. "The vines met their mythical goal," Ruel said. "They grew one meter and stopped, and had a perfect two clusters per vine."

The growers reported light set for most varieties and small berries, which winemakers love: "The small berries give higher tannins and more concentrated flavors," Beckstoffer said.
The limited water that reduced canopies also reduced the vines' need for water, and growers report balanced growth without the need for excess water. This was enhanced by mostly cool weather, which also reduced the need for irrigation and misting to cool the grapes.

"The lack of rain was a concern, yet everything grew well," said Mike Wolf of Michael Wolf Vineyard Services, which manages the Vine Hill Ranch. "It gave us a sense of control, that we could manage growth. We found we could hold off irrigation as long as we wanted." As a result, he didn't find a lot of need to irrigate the vines this year.

He added that the dry season highlighted the weak spots in vineyards quickly. Some growers, like Stan Zervas of Silverado Framing Company, are installing second drip irrigation lines so they can apply additional water selectively to these weaker areas.

Zervas said, too, that water has been the biggest challenge this year. "If you don't have a large reservoir, you have to plan carefully how to parcel out the water. We can make it, but have to be careful."

David Beckstoffer added, "This has been the driest season we've had for a decade. If we don't get enough rain this winter, we will be concerned."

One interesting phenomenon a number of growers noted was that the season started early, with bloom three weeks early in some cases, but then slowed down so the timing has almost caught up.

Of course, growers in different parts of the valley predict different harvest dates. Sparkling wine harvest is starting this week, and Beckstoffer saw Sauvignon Blanc harvest beginning the first week in September in Rutherford, with reds starting in mid-September. "If we continue to get this cool weather, it may be later," he warned. Even so, he said that the ripening is two weeks ahead of last year.

The discussion by appellation highlighted the different conditions in various parts of the diverse Napa Valley American Viticultural Area. In Pope Valley, for example, Patty Saldivar, the vineyardist for Hall Wines, noted special challenges, including high temperatures and heavy clay soils and soils containing high levels of magnesium. She uses misters and overhead sprinklers to deal with the heat in the 140-acre vineyard, but this year has been a mild one. "It's hit 100°F a few times, but at 4 p.m. when it's about to cool off, not at 11 a.m.," she said.

Hall committed to organic growing this year, and that created a challenge in dealing with the magnesium-rich soils, which are deficient in potassium. Gypsum and compost can help and Saldivar found that mowing instead of disking helps nitrogen uptake.

As it's increasing its focus on terroir-driven wines, Trinchero Family Estates has bought new vineyards on Mount Veeder and Atlas Peak. Vice president of vineyards Hal Huffsmith said that it had been a relatively simple growing season. "It's a good crop, but we've spent a lot of time reducing crop, in fact," he said. "It's required a lot of handwork."

In the Atlas Peak appellation, he prunes late to avoid Eutypa and rot problems, and that slows bud break. As a result, he expects harvest in early November, late for Napa Valley in general. "Mount Veeder should be complete by Halloween," he said.

With the excellent conditions, Mike Wolf summed up his concern for the harvest. "Our guiding principle has been: 'Don't screw it up.'"