During the grape harvest, visitors to our tasting room are typically surprised by the
Gewürztraminer and
Pinot Noir clusters and berries. Wine grape clusters are small, typically weighing about four ounces, with tiny berries that measure about a half-inch in diameter. Not only are the clusters and berries small, but wine-grapevines are shy producers, especially for fine wine production, yielding about four tons per acre as compared to an apple orchard which produces up to thirty tons of fruit per acre. The scant production, small clusters and tiny berries are attributes that have been deliberately selected by vineyardists over the centuries; these qualities facilitate making intensely flavorful wines, so it should come as no surprise that Navarro's
Gewürztraminer and
Pinot Noir juices are mighty flavorful. The grapes for juice are destemmed, pressed and the juice chilled down to about 32°F to prevent fermentation. Over the next couple of days, we cold-filter the juice rather than heating it, retaining all the fresh-fruit flavors.
Ripe Gewürz grapes in buckets (right) and ripe Pinot Noir cluster in hand (left). The Gewürz juice boasts floral aromas with flavors suggesting peach or passionfruit; the Pinot juice features strawberry-plum flavors with a bit more acidity than the Gewürz.