Vintage Reflections
Winemaker Melissa Paris
Harvest – By the Numbers
Fall 2025

One question that I hear a lot right now is” What are your days like?”

At dawn’s first light, I’m in the vineyard rows—walking blocks, tasting berries, chewing skins, and identifying our first pick windows. Consulting Winemaker Andy Erickson often joins me; he’s the calm, cool reminder that our focus is exactly where it should be: tasting the fruit, tracking the numbers, and making disciplined pick decisions that set up smart winemaking choices.

This week, I’m watching Brix (sugar level), TA (Total Acidity) and pH (another measure of acidity concentration); alongside weather trends, tasting skins and seeds for maturity, tracking malic acid as I plan for malolactic fermentations and refining pick windows. I’m also prioritizing morning picks, so berries arrive cool, taut, and aromatically intact.

This year, our vineyards are providing a terrific foundation for greatness, with high acidity and low pH. Remember: low pH equals high acidity, which brings bright, precise, naturally resilient wines. High pH equals lower acidity, which creates softness but requires more care in the cellar. Acidity is our built-in preservative—it lifts aroma, protects color, shapes texture, and supports longevity.

With this cooler year, malic acid (think orange juice acidity) is elevated—you can feel that green-apple snap in the pulp. All red wines will move through malolactic fermentation to knit tannins and soften their edges, while whites will be handled lot-by-lot —Chardonnay will have partial MLF for silk and length, while Sauvignon Blanc will remain bright and crisp with no MLF.

As I taste and plan for picking, a few factors stand out:

• Measures of Ripeness: Brix (sugar) Ripeness can be measured, but Phenolic Ripeness – skins, seeds, texture, flavor—can only be found by tasting. They don’t always sync, so I’ll wait for the vineyard to tell me it’s ready—not the spreadsheet.
• Heat Waves: Short bursts like we experienced recently can nudge Brix up and acidity down, helpful in a cool year, long heat waves cause vines to shut down.
• Alcohol & Integrity: Higher Brix means higher alcohol, but I prefer to manage this through timing, block selection, gentle extraction, and blending so the personality of the vineyard is still prominent in the wine.
• Fire & Smoke: The Pickett Fire did not damage vines or fruit at AO sites. Out of diligence, I’ve run micro-ferments and lab panels (volatile phenols and glycosides) out of good quality control measures as well as effective teaching exercises for my production team. I am in constant contact with my growers to ensure a quality product.