Harvest Report: Alsace 2002

Several days of strong warm southerly winds have allowed us to harvest (just in the past 3 days) some of our best Gewurztraminer on record.

Our top vineyards in the Grand Crû Sporen easily reached Vendange Tardive levels (over 16% potential) and even a fair quantity of Sélection de Grains Nobles at 24% potential was harvested last Monday with all 35 pickers.

Something we had not seen since 1989!

We just have one acre (0.4 hectares) of Pinot Gris left to be picked hoping that the fine weather will continue for a few more days. More to follow shortly when we resume our harvest...

25 October 2002

The weather forecast for the coming days looks like we have made the right decision in interrupting our picking.

24 October 2002

Despite our fears, the weather on Monday and Tuesday was quite clement.

Following scattered showers on Wednesday today dawned bright and sunny, allowing us to finish harvesting our Riesling vineyards at between 12.5% and 13% potential. Most of our Pinot Gris has now been harvested at around 14%, except for one vineyard of 40 acres (1 acre) in absolutely perfect condition, which we will leave in the hope of reaching late-harvest Vendange Tardive levels of ripeness. As far as our Gewurztraminer vineyards are concerned, picking will be suspended this evening. All the remaining grapes are already fully ripe and so we have every hope that continuing fine weather conditions will soon enable the minimum level of 16% potential required for Vendange Tardive to be exceeded.

18 October 2002

A rather tense week overall. After a good start last Monday we have had to play cat and mouse with some showers. Our picking team is now at full pace with close to 50 persons. By now, over half of our domain is picked. In the last few days, we have picked our lesser Gewurztraminers at 13 to 14% potential and our lesser Rieslings at an average of 12.5%. Our intention is to leave our best Gewurztraminer vineyards in the Grand Cru Sporen for possibly Late Harvest wines. All will be dependant on the weather... as always.

14 October 2002 - First assessment

After 2 weeks of picking, more than 90% of our grape purchases have been harvested, in generally clement weather, with only 2 days of rain during the fortnight. Overall, ripeness levels are excellent, except for Muscat where the crop was too abundant. The average levels of ripeness were as follows for purchased grapes: Pinot Blanc 11,4% - Pinot Noir 11,6% - Riesling 11,8% - Pinot Gris 12,9% and Gewurztraminer 13,4%. In our domain, all the Pinot Noir has now been picked, perfectly sound, with average potential alcohol of 12.5% and an average yield of 43 hl/ha. 2/3 of all Pinot Gris has also been harvested at an average of over 13%. Today we began picking some Riesling vineyards on the Schoenenbourg at more than 12.5%. The harvest is forecast to be completed in about 2 weeks.

10 October 2002

Purchased grapes continue to come in at a very fast pace due to the uncertainty regarding the weather for the end of the week. Last Sunday was rainy but since then we have had dry and clear skies. General levels of ripeness remain quite high but growers are rightly worried about the onset of rot. In our domain, we have picked some Pinot Gris in the last few days. They were over 13° potential in average but certainly due for harvest...

5 October 2002

Busy day today where many of our smaller growers take advantage of the bright weather. To date, after almost a full week of harvest, the good news comes from Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer which both came in at an average of over 13° potential. Yet, their sanitary state was rather heterogeneous and forced us to make some drastic selections. In our domain, we will harvest next Monday and Tuesday our very best Pinot Noirs with high expectations. The weather should again be on our side.

2 October 2002

In the last two days, we have received half of all our Pinot Noir purchases. Maturity was around 11° potential due to rather high yields. Next Thursday will see the first incoming Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminers from contract growers.

In our domain, we have picked in the first two days some early ripening Pinot Gris at above 14° potential. A very encouraging start.

30 September 2002

First day of harvest. The weather conditions are excellent for the coming days. Monday 30 and Tuesday 1st will be very intense with the reception of the first round of Pinot Noirs. Purchases of Pinot Blanc, Muscat and Sylvaner will also start arriving in the next few days.

27 September 2002

The cold and wet front is gone at last after 5 days of gloomy weather.

23 September 2002

A passing cold front brought light rain (7mm or a third of an inch overnight) but the weather forecast is for anticyclonic conditions to return from Wednesday.

18 September 2002

The weather in Alsace remains bright and sunny.

Today we checked ripeness levels in every vineyard on our estate, and the results are already very encouraging: Pinot Noir 10.8 to 12.2% potential alcohol; Pinot Gris 11.1 to 12.4%; Gewurztraminer 10.7 to 12.4% and Riesling 9.5 to 11%. In our own Pinot Noir vineyards the harvest will begin in 12 days' time, but one week later for all the other varieties.

13 September 2002

Superb weather with a high-pressure system well established over France. Nothing better for our spirit just 2 weeks away from the start of harvest!

10 September 2002

The start of the 2002 Alsace harvest has just been set to 30 September for the still wines.

Summary of the 2002 season

In Alsace, the year 2002 began with an extremely cold January, and the ground was frozen solid for one whole month.

Spring was alternately sunny and rainy. Budburst was in early April, and the cycle of vegetation got off to a slow start. There was no spring frost. The weather in May and June was favourable.

Flowering took place in mid-June, very quickly and very evenly, with neither coulure problems, nor even any millerandage. A large harvest looks likely!

Taking into consideration the forecast of a bumper crop, in early July we began an unprecedentedly severe program to remove excess bunches (a green harvest) which continued until mid-September. Such is the price to pay for quality.

In July and August, beautiful sunshine and damp weather alternated. Overall, precipitation was low, and nothing compared to the catastrophic conditions that afflicted Germany and Austria.

In Alsace, in mid-September, we are expecting an abundant crop and, so far, the sanitary state of our vineyards is exemplary. We are fully conscious of just how privileged we are once more, after the bad weather damage that our colleagues in the south of France have just endured...