Verde Valley Harvest Takes a Village

 Claiming that this year’s harvest was fast and furious, Verde Valley Wine Consortium President Paula Woolsey said, “It was hot and not a lot of rain or the traditional monsoons, so brix [sugar] levels were high, producing a good vintage. All in all, it was a good year and because of the heat, it accelerated harvest so vintners worked hard to get their grapes picked.”

 “When Mother Nature is in charge of your business, you’re looking for a wild ride,” said Oak Creek Vineyards & Winery Winemaker Adam Gingrich.

 Across the Verde Valley friends, family and hirelings were out in force to pick a variety of grapes in August and September, making harvest a jovial time of getting up early, congregating together, sweating in the heat of the morning and chatting between the trellises.

 It’s an interesting observation that just as grapes grow in clusters, a group of Verde Valley winegrowers in Page Springs concordantly clump together as well to lend each other a helping hand during harvest.

 Winegrower Sam Rosenow has owned his Page Springs hillside vineyard for 12 years and grows about 2,000 vines of Barbera grapes, a red Italian variety, on his two acres. He sells his harvest to Oak Creek Vineyards & Winery owned by Nathalie and Gary Carruthers, who, along with others, were picking grapes.

 “This is something that happens every year at harvest,” said Rosenow. “Students, vineyard owners and individuals from around the Valley get together to help each other pick grapes. This is my 12th pick of the year.  People come to help me and I help others, it’s a lot of fun, and also it’s interesting to see how others care for their vineyards.”

 Rosenow noted that “the redeeming thought is like real estate: location, location, location. Well, with vines, it’s attention, attention, attention.”

 “We have to be supportive of each other because if we aren’t, none of us are going to survive.  We’re all here trying to do the same thing and we may do it a little differently but if somebody needs something and we have it, we’re immediately there to loan it to them. At the heart, we’re farmers and we live off the land and it takes a lot of teamwork. It’s important that all get together to make it happen,” said Gingrich.

 DA Vines Vineyard Owner John Rachel was also part of the picking crew. “Sam helped us yesterday when we harvested our Cabernet; today we’re pitching in to pick this delicious Barbera. We grow Merlot, Tempranillo, Montepulciano, Graciano and many Cabernet varieties.” DA Vines Vineyard also has a wine and bistro tasting room in Cottonwood.

 “The bunches of grapes here seem a little smaller this year but there’s a lot of them and we’re excited,” said Carruthers, noting how the top and bottom end of Rosenow’s vineyard are different because of the angle of the sun. “The foliage is dense on top, not so much the bottom, it’s like two completely different harvests. Overall, we’ll get really good wine out of this. It will be really delicious.”   

 Sam Digiovanni of Cottonwood joined in the fun and was amazed at the beauty. “Sam [Rosenow] takes such good care of his vines. This is my first time picking grapes and this tree line reminds me of Tuscany. Imagine that: a little piece of Tuscany right here in Arizona.”

 Gingrich noted that harvest looks good all the way around. “For a tough vintage, we’re seeing a lot of really good fruit and looking forward to some really good wine. It was warm this year, so everyone expected the volume of grapes to be a lighter year, but it actually turned out to be a little more volume than expected.” 

The yield on Rosenow’s vineyard was expected to be four tons this year and they’ve seen up to six tons.

 Across the valley in Camp Verde, Clear Creek Vineyard owner Ignacio Mesa also had friends help pick grapes along with his employees. “This year the Cabernet Franc ripened earlier than the Merlot but so far it looks like a good vintage this year.”

 At Alcantara Vineyards Winemaker and Vineyard Manager Ron Brumley said their 2025 harvest went smoothly. “Grapes look good and we’re getting what I believe to be an average yield. Fermentations are rolling along well. Our Wine Club Member Harvest Party is coming up soon and I’m looking forward to that.”

 Private vineyard owners also did well and sought the help of faithful friends as well. Dan Tierney of Camp Verde, who trained in Napa, harvested throughout August. “It was a challenging year with the heat, but we ended up with good quality grapes and a hefty yield.”

 In 2021, the Verde Valley received the American Viticultural Area (AVA) status, which recognizes and identifies Verde Valley as a federally recognized grape growing region such as Napa Valley, Sonoma Valley and other well-known wine producing areas. The Verde Valley AVA covers an area of 219 square miles, according to the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension. VVBN

By V. Ronnie Tierney, VVBN

Photos by V. Ronnie Tierney, Fresh Focuses Photography: Acoustic Cellars Lodge owner Dawn Morgan, Winegrower Sam Rosenow and Leon J bring in the final yield of Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris grapes from a private vineyard in Camp Verde.