(BN) The Busy Day in the Life of a Star Napa Winemaker During Harvest

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The Busy Day in the Life of a Star Napa Winemaker During Harvest
2021-10-01 13:50:09.542 GMT


By Elin McCoy
(Bloomberg Businessweek) -- Known for his classically
balanced wines and long commitment to organic production, Steve
Matthiasson is a man in high demand. For his eponymous label, he
farms a dozen small vineyards, including one at his winery in
Napa’s Oak Knoll district. He consults on 15 more that belong to
his eight high-profile clients—the largest sprawls across 400
acres.
His 27th harvest season stretches over seven weeks, and
each day is a master class in multitasking. The key decision, he
says, is always when to pick. That, more than anything else,
determines the style of wine you can make.
Last year’s harvest in Napa was a horror show of wildfires;
this year Matthiasson is all smiles. “The quality is the best I
can remember,” he says.
Here’s what his day looked like on Sept. 2, about halfway
through his harvest.
7:33 a.m.
COFFEE, THEN PLANNING
Matthiasson begins at 6 a.m. with coffee. His crew has been
picking every day since Aug. 5. Today they’re on the cabernet
franc grapes in hishome Matthiasson plot. With fog hanging over
Napa’s hills, he consults with his vineyard manager, Caleb
Mosley, to plan the day. How much fruit is coming into the
winery? Will they have to clean an extra tank?

8:29 a.m.
ROAMING THE VINES
He spends much of the day going from vineyard to vineyard
to check how close the grapes are to ripening and to detect
potential problems such as mealybugs or mildew. He’ll visit
seven today: The first is Papa’s Perch on Mt. Veeder where the
cabernet sauvignon goes into his own wine. Ripening cues such as
the color of the leaves and the firmness of the grapes help him
figure out if he’ll have to pick some sections first or can
harvest all at once.
9:20 a.m.
A TASTE TEST
At Bengier’s Dry Creek Vineyard in the cool, foggy southern
part of Napa Valley, he nibbles on ribolla gialla, a rare white
Italian grape he uses for one of his own wines. He’s tasting for
many things, including whether some are tart and others sweet
and juicy.
10:03 a.m.
MEASURING SUGAR
He heads back to the winery with grape samples to confirm
his impressions. His hand-held refractometer measures the
grapes’ sugar content in degrees Brix, which increases as the
grapes ripen. During fermentation the yeast converts the sugars
to alcohol; higher Brix means higher potential alcohol. To get
brighter wines with complex aromas at 12% alcohol, Matthiasson
picks at a lower Brix level—18 to 22 for chardonnay—than most
Napa producers, who opt for more potent wines.

10:28 a.m.
FERMENTATION CHECK-INS
At the winery he checks on pinot noir grape skins
fermenting in tanks, doing punch downs with a tool to keep the
juice in contact with the skins to extract more color, flavor,
and tannin. Matthiasson doesn’t usually produce a pinot noir,
but this year a former intern offered him some extra fruit from
an organic vineyard in Sonoma, and he couldn’t resist.
10:43 a.m.
TASTING AGAIN
Matthiasson and the team try a sample of the fermenting
pinot. Is it good? The answer is written in the smile on his
face. Although it’s not yet wine, he’s excited by the density,
along with minerality and freshness—his “holy grail” of balance.
The small amount means it will be only for Matthiasson wine club
members, for $59 a bottle. (Members usually pay from $334 to
$631 per 6- or 12-bottle shipment.)
1:31 p.m.
CLIENT CALLS
After a quick taco-truck-and-Coke lunch, he hits the road
to visit his clients’ vineyards. Everyone worries at harvest
time. Matthiasson advises on strategic vine care, identifying
issues that could reduce valuable yields and offering organic
solutions. At Dalla Valle he discusses with owner Naoko Dalla
Valle, her daughter and winemaker Maya, and vineyard manager
Edgar Alfaro whether some vines have a virus that they must deal
with before it spreads. The next stop is Eisele Vineyard, which
belongs to François Pinault, owner of Bordeaux’s Château Latour.

4:04 p.m.
DESTEMMING TECHNIQUE
Back at his winery he coaches Gabriela Pilar Fontanesi, one
of his four interns, on using the destemming machine on the
just-picked cabernet franc grapes. Doing this before crushing
and fermentation minimizes the astringent tannins the stems can
add to a wine.
4:51 p.m.
AT THE DESK
The end of the day is always at the computer. Sitting in
his messy attic-loft office above the winery, Matthiasson
records the latest sugar levels on a huge spreadsheet. Tracking
this way shows him trends—the rate of ripening, how fast flavor
is developing—that help him predict what’s coming next. He wraps
up at 7 p.m. after walking one more vineyard near the winery.