From Green to Gorgeous: Veraison’s Peak

As sum­mer reach­es its peak, the vine­yard is alive with col­or — verai­son is now in full swing, mark­ing one of the most beau­ti­ful and piv­otal stages of the grow­ing season.

Verai­son marks the point when grape berries begin to soft­en and change col­or — a visu­al cue that ripen­ing is offi­cial­ly under­way. In red vari­eties, like many of ours, green grapes start turn­ing deep pur­ple, sig­nal­ing a shift from berry growth to sug­ar accu­mu­la­tion and fla­vor development.

This sea­son, wine­mak­er Steve Beck­men, assis­tant wine­mak­er Rory Bald­win and cel­lar­mas­ter Abel Her­rera are all feel­ing incred­i­bly opti­mistic. The 2025 grow­ing sea­son has deliv­ered ide­al con­di­tions: warm, dry days and just enough ear­ly-sea­son rain to fuel healthy vine growth. The fruit sets are large and plen­ti­ful, but the clus­ters remain airy and well-spaced, reduc­ing the risk of trapped mois­ture or rot — an impor­tant sign of qual­i­ty and longevity.

“This is exact­ly what we want to see at this point in the sea­son,” says Steve. ​“The fruit looks beau­ti­ful, and the vine­yard is in excel­lent balance.”

Verai­son is a turn­ing point — a visu­al reminder that har­vest is on the hori­zon and that anoth­er promis­ing vin­tage is tak­ing shape. We’ll be keep­ing a close eye on the vines in the com­ing weeks, but for now, we’re savor­ing this moment of antic­i­pa­tion in the vineyard.

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