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VINTAGE 2012 Vintage 2012 A special vintage on the West Coast, and a sunny but smaller harvest in the East By Andrew Adams S peaking to Wines & Vines shortly after he concluded harvest, Bill Pesonen sounded almost giddy when describing the most recent vintage. Pesonen is the winemaker and co-owner of William Gordon Winery in Cloverdale, Calif. He said the winery���s Petite Sirah and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes turned out to be excellent. ���Everything came together perfectly, and there was no rain,��� he said. ���We���re truly gifted.��� He said that as he tasted the wines through fermentation and pressing they exhibited a wonderful balance and flavors. ���Every time we pressed out some of the must, just consistently very good aromas and flavors,��� Pesonen said. The vintner is not alone in his estimation of the 2012 harvest. Across California, winemakers and growers shed their usual reserve to praise the most recent growing season. Unlike in previous years, the harvest hype pushed by winery marketing staff and regional wine and grower groups appears accurate. Wines & Vines surveyed extension advisors, university staff and growers across North America for reports about vintage 2012. While conditions in California generally stood out as being remarkably favorable aside from a heat spike in the Central Coast, most people reported good to fair conditions in every region this past harvest. Growers in the Midwest saw reduced yields because of frosts following an early bloom, but the fruit they did harvest was of good quality thanks to a hot and dry summer. In the East, an early bloom helped growers dodge super storm Sandy, and drier than normal conditions in most states helped bring the overall quality of winegrapes up while reducing disease pressure. Ensuring adequate labor for harvest continues to be a major challenge for almost every growing region. In the Sierra Nevada foothills of California, some growers had to wait a week for crews. Because of the scarcity of labor, machine harvesting continues to become more popular. Another area of friction is tank space; wineries in some regions were hard pressed to find room for grapes���especially red varieties. Wines & Vines would like to thank those who participated in this report. If your area was not included, and you���d like to contribute to next year, please email edit@winesandvines.com. Red Cat Cellars receives winegrapes at its winemaking facility in Naples, N.Y., Randall T agg 100 W in e s & V i ne s JANUARY 20 13