Wash. wine grape harvest off to early start

Tools

KEPR

By Associated Press

Story Published: Oct 2, 2009 at 8:32 PM PDT

YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) - Wine grape growers in central Washington say their harvest is off to an early start.

The region experienced warm, dry weather throughout the summer and into September, which pushed the harvest ahead of schedule in some areas.

Dick Boushey of Boushey Vineyards near Prosser says harvest there is probably a week ahead of last year. Bob Bertheau of Chateau Ste. Michelle says workers at Cold Creek Vineyard can hardly pick cabernet and merlot grapes fast enough to keep up with the ripening pace.

Several growers say this year's harvest is at about the halfway point.

Current Weather

Icon
Current Temp 60.0 °F
Fair
Video
More Weather

Upload directly from your mobile device.

Learn how

YouNews

This content requires the latest Adobe Flash Player and a browser with JavaScript enabled. Click here for a free download of the latest Adobe Flash Player.

On Demand