A wine writer tries his hand at grape-harvesting

Rumbling slowly up the mountain in the swaying van that October morning, I tried to imagine how the scene outside the window must have appeared to Peter Newton 35 years ago— before he cut the switchback road up the slope, planted vineyards and created his eponymous winery.

Most of Spring Mountain remains in its natural state even today—thickly forested, with trees stretching skyward and a tangle of undergrowth choking the way at ground level. Climbing up the mountain on foot three decades ago, Newton must have had a tough time seeing much of anything.

In the 1970s most Napa wine was grown on the valley’s broad floor, where viticulture was comparatively easy. But Newton and his wife, Su Hua, believed that mountainside fruit would develop the rich flavors required to make great wines, notwithstanding the difficulty of tending vines and harvesting grapes in such places. In 1977, the Newtons purchased a square mile of “tumbling slopes overlooking the Napa Valley” and set out to test their vision.

The test was successful. Newton Vineyard has become one of Napa County’s leading wineries, producing tasty red wines from grapes grown on its Spring Mountain estate, as well as yummy Chardonnays from vineyards in the Carneros region farther south.

I was ascending Spring Mountain to attend Crush Camp. Newton Vineyard had invited several writers from around the country to tour the winery, chat with winemaker Chris Millard, and pick grapes. We were advised to bring comfortable shoes and clothing “appropriate for the outdoors.”

Arriving at our destination we descended from the van and looked around. The mountain view was splendid. Otherwise, there wasn’t much to see—a drive leading to the private Newton residence, not visible from our location; a grass bocce ball court; the narrow road continuing on up the mountain to the highest vineyard block; a small office building; and a loading dock, the winery entrance.

Most of the winery is underground, its roof covered with several feet of soil on which Su Hua Newton planted an English parterre garden. The cellars also are underground, of course; we had passed their entrance on our way up.

Our tour of the winery and discussions with Chris Millard were fascinating, but the highlight of our visit proved to be, not surprisingly, our session picking grapes.

We were to harvest a block of Merlot. We rode down to the block in question and gathered around Millard and his vineyard manager as they explained what was up.

Millard gave each of us a small curved knife called a cuchillo, a safety glove and a plastic box roughly 30 inches long by 18 inches wide. He explained that we were to reach into the vines, place our gloved hands underneath the clusters of grapes, cut them loose with the cuchillo and place them in our boxes. When the boxes were filled, we were to carry them to the end of the row and deposit their contents in a large bin that had been left there earlier by a tractor. Then, we were to head back down the row to continue where we had left off.

Our training complete, we set to work.

A moment’s reflection will suggest that picking grapes might not be easy work, especially for a tall, out-of-shape wine lover unaccustomed to stooping to grape level for hours on end and carrying boxes of grapes around on mountain slopes.

The interesting thing about the harvesting exercise was learning about quality control. Some of the grapes on the vines had been spoiled—nibbled by birds or dried by the sun. Some hadn’t ripened properly. We had to make judgments about the quality of the grapes as we worked. If too many grapes in a cluster were spoiled, we were to drop it on the ground. Only the best clusters could go into our boxes.

This was only the first step in the quality process. The grapes we picked were examined by experienced sorters before they were crushed.

We continued working for about an hour. (It seemed longer.) We more or less filled the large bin by the time we were done, having harvested about half a ton of prime Merlot grapes.

Crush Camp was not all hard work. In addition to picking grapes, we managed to dine well, consume some outstanding wine and play bocce.

Taste Tests

Newton is an artisanal winery that has a commitment to sustainable agriculture and natural winemaking techniques. One example of this commitment is Newton’s production of unfiltered wines.

During fermentation and ageing, wine is full of tiny particles—fragments of grape skin, yeast cells, etc. Winemakers often filter wine to remove them. Unfortunately, filtration also can remove flavor. Alternatively, winemakers let particles settle naturally and then pump the clear wine from the barrels, leaving the residue behind. This increases costs but produces better wines.

Rich purple in color, the 2008 Newton Vineyard Unfiltered Cabernet Sauvignon ($60) has a bouquet of dark fruit with a fragrant halo of pepper, oak, crushed green leaves and tobacco. On first sip, one notices juicy, mouthwatering fruit with evanescent licorice and spices. Oak flavors become apparent after a few minutes, as do tobacco nuances. A lush texture and tasteful acidity make this an excellent partner for food— especially steak.

The 2007 Newton Vineyard “The Puzzle” ($80) is somewhat lighter and more melodious in flavor than the Cabernet Sauvignon. A Bordeaux-style blend comprising Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, it is a rich, dark Burgundy color with a bouquet of tart fruit that introduces flavors of raspberries, Bing cherries, plums, blueberries and red apples amid elements of bitter chocolate, pepper, cedar and oak. It is moderately tart with discrete tannin and a good mouthfeel. This is a wine that just keeps getting better and better as one sips.

The 2008 Newton Vineyard Unfiltered Chardonnay ($60) is classic California Chardonnay. Pale straw in color, it offers an enticing bouquet of fresh fruit and honeyed oak. The lush flavor is rich, round, golden and focused—like the voice of a Puccini heroine (Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi, perhaps, or Liù in Turandot)—with pears, figs, and honeysuckle augmented by some vanilla from the oak ageing. It’s delightful.