2023 Harvest
“Oustanding” Defines the 2023 Harvest Sergio Cuadra, Fall Creek Vineyards Director of Winemaking
We are nearly finished with the 2023 wine grape harvest in the Texas Hill Country. If I had to define this year’s harvest in one word it would be “Outstanding. Every grape that we bring into the winery is very healthy.
Our growers in the Hill Country have had a wonderful year in terms of yield. This year the grape vines have produced healthy and abundant crops, and we can make more wine.
Not only do we have great quantity, but we also have excellent quality. The results from each vineyard for every single lot have exceeded expectations. These grapes are of exceptional quality. We’re seeing this throughout various areas of the Hill Country. We haven’t yet picked grapes in the High Plains; however, we expect to have good results there as well.
The key factor in achieving this quantity and quality is the weather. We had a normal amount of rainfall in the spring with rainy days scattered over several weeks. It was not too wet and not too dry. The Texas Hill Country had perfect conditions for vine growth and development with the right amounts of water and nutrients early in the season. We didn’t need to achieve that with irrigation because it happened naturally.
Then the drought came, and we haven’t had any substantial rain since the beginning of June. Most of June, July, and August has been absolutely dry. This has given us the ability to control the growth of the vines by precisely managing irrigation amounts row by row. The second advantage of drought is there is minimal pest and fungal pressure on the vines because of the lack of moisture in the air.
Despite the record-high temperatures, the plants are very healthy and in good shape. The grapevines have adapted well to the heat. In some vineyards, the grapes have ripened a little bit earlier than in previous years, but not substantially. In fact, last year we completed harvest in our vineyards in the Texas Hill Country by August 8. Now in mid-August, we are still waiting to harvest Mourvèdre, our last crop. We are reaching the ripeness we want without needing to harvest early.
The high quality of fruit is true for all grape varieties that we have harvested. Our Tempranillo grapes look fantastic, but they are more tannic than in previous years. We adjusted our pump-over regime accordingly to ensure the finished wine is not overly tannic. The rest of the varieties are stylistically on point. We harvested Tannat which is outstanding. It’s typically a highly tannic grape, but this crop is well-balanced and not overly tannic. We pressed it and it will be an amazing wine.
Salt Lick Vineyard is always our gem, and it has performed really well again this year. Likewise, the crop from Certenberg Vineyard is top-notch with Chardonnay, Merlot, and Petit Verdot grapes all outstanding. We are also getting excellent Tannat from Nolan Creek Vineyard near Killeen.
This week we’re getting our first grapes from the Texas High Plains. We expect excellent fruit. I’m optimistic.
It has been a very good year for wine grapes in the Texas Hill Country. This is a showcase vintage, truly a standout. I’m eager for these wines to be ready to share with you. It will be Outstanding.
Fall Creek Vineyards Director of Winemaking, Sergio Cuadra