Listen in as we discuss Napa Valley’s 2024 growing season and vintage with our expert panel. Our panelists include Matt Stornetta, owner of Stornetta Made Farming; Bertus van Zyl, lead winemaker at Farm Collective; Richie Allen, senior director of winemaking at Rombauer Vineyards; and Pauline Lhote, winemaking director at CHANDON. The conversation is moderated by Read the full article…
2024 Napa Valley Vintage
Described as dynamic and rich in flavor, the 2024 vintage captures the unique character of Napa Valley, blending boldness with elegance.
It was a textbook year for winemaking, yet it was also unusual for the numerous days of heat during the growing season. Key to the success of the vintage was heavy winter rain that set the vines up for success.
The winter rains saturated the soil and laid a foundation for healthy vegetative growth. The resulting natural shade canopy protected the crop through the expansive summertime heat from June through harvest.
For winemakers, it was a low stress year as everything came in as expected, yet it was also compacted which required the flexibility and collaboration of vineyard and winemaking teams over long harvest days. Most of the grape harvest took place a night with early morning delivery to the crush pads.
The sparkling wine harvest took place from early August to early September. Still wine varieties began in mid-August and wrapped up by mid-October.
2024 Harvest Updates
Read the “Vintage Tracker” updates from 2024.
Vintage Quotes
– “2024 is electric. Analytically, 2024 had high malic acids, high titratable acidities, low pHs, coupled with some of the highest sugars for which I have waited. One of the most primal, and difficult to describe features was the utter transparency and precision of the wines. There was purity that, as we tasted through our tanks, hit the plexus like a cord resonating from a perfectly tuned musical instrument.
While it is a professional pet-peeve to pigeonhole a vintage before it’s even gone through malo, in the balance, it is important to take a pause and name the defining features while they are still vivid. The Napa 2024 vintage is the most beautiful I’ve ever taken part in.” – Diana Snowden, Snowden Vineyards
Related Articles
– 2024 Vintage: First Take by Snowden Vineyards
– Harvest 2024 – A Northbay Halftime Report by Adam Lee
Vintage Chart
Coming soon
Vintage Videos
2024 Napa Valley Vintage Report by Somm TV
Napa Valley harvest report: 2024 Harvest winding down
“Many wineries are wrapping up the 2024 harvest this week. And while the actual harvest is in, the work is far from over in the wineries.” – Kristin Belair, Honig Vineyard & Winery Read the whole report at the St Helena Star website
Napa Valley harvest report: Harvest entering high gear
As Cabernet Sauvignon rolls in, quality is said to be impressive. Marcus Notaro of Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars reports “beautiful intense colors, rich tannins, bright acidity and complex flavors.” Read the whole report by Jesse Duarte at the St Helena Star website
For Amici Cellars, the waiting is the hardest part!
Harvest is in full swing across Napa Valley, but winemakers are watching one particular grape with anticipation – our Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons! The team at Amici Cellars tell us that, while whites have been coming in for a few weeks, and some reds like Pinot Noir are coming in, almost no one has pulled Read the full article…
Chris from Kenefick Ranch Winery on #NapaValley #Harvest2024
What makes certain grapes come in ahead of others? Since all grape vines are in the ground and don’t get planted each spring (like tomatoes, for example), the grapes themselves follow their natural growth cycle each year. And, like the humans who tend them, some are early and some are late. Whites always tend to Read the full article…
