With the return of warm days and drier weather, the BC grape harvest is in full swing in the Okanagan and Similkameen Valleys.

Harvest began in early September in BC with the first grapes being picked by Jackson-Triggs Okanagan Estate, under the guidance of White Winemaker Derek Kontkanen, on September 1st in the South Okanagan. The majority of BC wineries, however, began their harvest between September 11th and 28th.

From all accounts, 2009 is sure to be another great year for BC wines. “The fruit looks very good and the vineyards are in great condition. It’s pretty exciting to be quite honest,” says James Hopper, Senior Viticulturalist with Mission Hill Family Estate Winery, who began picking on Tuesday, September 8th.

Grant Stanley, Winemaker for Quails’ Gate Estate Winery agrees, “The warm summer conditions that carried into September have created the optimal growing conditions for the grapes at Quails’ Gate. I expect this will be some of the ripest fruit ever.”

The beginning of October saw slight precipitation and cooler than average temperatures, but the return of the warmer, dry weather this past week has winemakers and grapegrowers in high spirits.  As Howard Soon, Winemaker for Sandhill and Calona Vineyards explains, “I am very optimistic. The majority of our fruit is already ripe and ready to pick, which is a change from 2008. The cooler temperatures slowed ripening, which allowed us to get a good foundation for crush.”

In the Similkameen valley, Herder Winery & Vineyards has completed approximately half of their harvest and expect to have all fruit harvested over the next 14 days. “It’s been a good steady harvest for the whites, and we are now picking the reds. It looks like it will be an early year for reds as we expect to have all the fruit in over the next two weeks,” explains Owner/Winemaker Lawrence Herder. Two weeks is the ideal scenario, but with weather forecasters predicting a potential frost in the near future, Herder is not overly concerned, “We have very nice flavours in all the fruit, and the brix are increasing nicely. If there was a frost this weekend, we would be in a position where we could harvest all our fruit. It would be nice to have the additional hang time for flavour development, but we are comfortable bringing it all in if necessary.”