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Napa Valley Grapegrowers report that the 2010 vintage is shapingup to be of exceptional quality, despite the unruly weather that theregion received. The cooler than average summer temperaturesfollowed by several heat spells have not distressed the grapes as predicatedby some. In fact, the long growing season is resulting inwinegrapes of well-developed flavors and more balance. The laterthan-normalharvest is proving to be a quality vintage the Napa ValleyGrapegrowers are proud to stand behind.“This was, by many accounts, the most challenging growing seasonwe’ve experienced in a long time, but what I am seeing has made meextremely optimistic about the flavors and quality of this year’svintage,” said Ann Vawter, winemaker and proprietor at Red MareWines and a member of Napa Valley Grapegrowers. “These last fewheat waves are helping to produce mature grapes that will help toWINE COUNTRY THIS WEEK | WINE COUNTRY NEWSNapa Valley’s Spectacular Outlook to this Year’s Harvestdistinguish this as a premier year for Napa Valley wines.”Another member of the Napa Valley Grapegrowers, Jon Ruel, thedirector of viticulture and winemaking at Trefethen Family Vineyards,says he has seen “big changes in flavors and chemistry over the pastweek. The relatively higher acids this year have come down with therecent heat wave - and where it is still high, it’s mostly malic acidwhich can be consumed in malolactic fermentation.”Members of the Napa Valley Grapegrowers have an extremely positiveoutlook on this year’s harvest. In the Carneros region, grapegrowersare reporting good seed maturity and tremendous flavor intheir harvest. Stag’s Leap is discovering its harvest has tremendousflavor without any green characters. At Trefethen Family Vineyards inthe Oak Knoll District, they saw warm temperatures provide a nicefinish to the early varieties and push the Cabernet to maturity.www.WineCountryThisWeek.com27