Stobi Harvest 2014
Posted on Mon 13th Jul 2015 at 14:58
It is always a busy time of year at the Stobi winery with the harvest starting on August 23rd; commencing with the picking of the first grapes (Pinot Noir).
Due to the seasonality of the work it is very busy at this time; the whole ambience in the winery is totally different compared with the rest of the year. The winery works in 2 shifts including weekends and holidays preparing both red and white grapes daily. Fermentation starts and samples are taken daily from different vineyards following the grape maturity in order to determine the exact date of harvesting. There is no fixed harvesting agenda, it all depends on the maturity of the grapes, however, usually the Pinot Noir is quickly followed by the Chardonnay and Muscat Ottonel, and then by the Riesling, Zilavka, Zupljanka and Vranec. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and R’kaciteli are harvested by the end of September with a couple of the grapes varieties left to be harvested in October. Each and every employee is busy in this period with their specific activities, with their attention fully occupied handling harvesting machines etc. Staff are meticulous, concentrated and cautious because any discontinuity (delay or stop) in the production process can be costly. The enologists are trying the grapes, the grape must (grape juice not yet fermented) and young wines, following their development. Weather predictions are also most carefully monitored, especially important because in case of rain, the harvesting can be stopped for a couple of days which can of course have consequences. The winery processes the grapes the whole month of September until the end of October and the working rhythm remains the same except in case of weather problems.