Skip to content

Good food and wine sustain us best when produced with care and shared with friends.

Sign up for our monthly newsletter to discover what’s new from California’s trend-setting wineries, farms, and kitchens.

août, 2020

harvest platter

Ready, Set…Harvest!

Nature’s big moment: It’s so fun to cook at this time of year because, well, you hardly have to. Nature does most of the work, bestowing a bounty of late-summer veggies that just need to be sliced up or barely blanched. A creamy Green Goddess dip the color of jade completes this pretty picture. Unless you’d prefer a sweet and tangy roasted red pepper dip? There’s a solution to this dreadful dilemma: make both. They can duke it out.

While you’re diving into the dips, raise a glass to the farmers who make the annual produce bonanza happen. And then another toast, please, to the winegrowers responsible for that lovely rosé you’re enjoying. They are prepping right now for their year’s Big Moment. Sparkling wine producers kick off the vintage, with their grape harvest typically underway by early August. By the end of the month, white winegrapes like Sauvignon Blanc are crushed and fermenting.

The weeks leading up to harvest are crazy busy. Winery crews are scrubbing tanks, repairing equipment, and bottling last year’s wines to make room for the new. Growers are patrolling their vineyards daily, thinning grape clusters that are lagging behind or showing sunburn. Because many vineyards are harvested at night when it’s cool—both for crew comfort and fruit quality—growers want to remove any flawed fruit that someone on the picking team might not see. Nature has the final word, but the 2020 vintage is looking top-notch.

WATER WISE

In many of California’s top winegrowing regions, the warmest weeks are right around harvest. Winegrowers must ensure they have enough water in their reservoirs to get vines through the last lap. In some regions, vineyards can be dry-farmed with no irrigation. This allows the roots to plunge deep to withstand hot spells. Limiting yields—by removing crop, in some cases—also lowers irrigation needs. At Spottswoode Winery in St. Helena, a modern optical fruit sorter is used during crush because it’s easier to clean than the equipment it replaced, significantly reducing water use. In California vineyards, every drop counts.

The Pour

Which Wine?

The soaring popularity of rosé shows no sign of slowing. Once you join this wine style’s fan club, you’re a member for life. Vintners who might once have considered rosé a gateway wine for those just getting launched in wine enjoyment know that the audience has shifted now. Some of rosé’s biggest boosters are sommeliers, who appreciate how well it goes with fresh cheeses, crudités, platters of prosciutto and other cured meats, and produce-centered meals. California’s Central Coast produces many charming dry rosés made with Rhône grape varieties such as Grenache, Mourvèdre, and Cinsault.

Meet the Grapes: Explore more wine pairings

The Recipe

Duo de trempettes et légumes du marché

Visit a nearby farmers market or farm stand (or your own garden) to find the season’s best produce for your platter. Think about contrasting color, texture and shape as you assemble your masterpiece. 

Wine suggestion: California Rosé or California Sauvignon Blanc

harvest platter

Ingredients

Trempette de la déesse verte

  • ¾ tasse de mayonnaise
  • ¼ tasse de crème sûre
  • 3 filets d’anchois
  • ¼ tasse de ciboulette fraîche ciselée
  • ¼ tasse de persil italien haché
  • 1 cuillerée à table d’estragon frais haché
  • 2 cuillerées à table de jus de citron
  • 1 gousse d’ail émincée
  • Sel de mer ou Kosher
  • Vinaigre de vin blanc

Trempette de poivron rouge grillé, noix de Grenoble et grenade

  • 1 gros poivron rouge
  • 1/3 tasse de chapelure
  • 1/3 tasse de noix de Grenoble grillés et hachés grossièrement et plus pour la garniture
  • 1 gousse d’ail émincée
  • 1 cuillerée à table d’huile d’olive extra vierge
  • 2 cuillerée à table de mélasse de grenade et plus pour la garniture
  • 1 cuillerée à thé de jus de citron
  • ½ cuillerée à thé de graines de cumin moulu
  • ½ cuillerée à thé de piment Aleppo ou Mara, paprika piquant ou autre poudre de chili
  • Sel de mer ou Kosher
  • Persil ou coriandre pour la garniture

Préparation

Trempette de la déesse verte

Dans un mélangeur, combiner la mayonnaise, la crème sûre, les anchois, la ciboulette, le persil, l’estragon et l’ail.  Mélanger jusqu’à consistance lisse et verte.  Transférer dans un bol et assaisonner avec le sel.  Goûter et ajouter un trait de vinaigre de vin blanc si l’appareil a besoin de plus d’acidité.

Environ 1 tasse

Trempette de poivron rouge grillé, noix de Grenoble et grenade (Muhammara)

Préchauffer le four à broil et préparer une grille à six pouces de l’élément.  Rôtir le poivron rouge sur une plaque jusqu’à ce qu’il soit noir de tous les côtés.  Laisser refroidir et enlever la peau et les pépins.  Assécher avec un essuis-tout.

Mettre dans un robot culinaire le poivron grillé, la chapelure, les noix de Grenoble, l’ail, l’huile d’olive, la mélasse de grenade, le jus de citron, le cumin et la poudre de piment et mélanger jusqu’à consistance lisse.  Ajouter le sel et bien mélanger.  Goûter et rectifier l’équilibre sucré/acidulé en ajoutant de la mélasse de grenade ou du jus de citron.

Mettre dans un bol et garnir avec un trait de mélasse de grenade, des noix de grenoble du persil ou des feuilles de coriandre.

  /  

Wine Institute is an association of California wineries and affiliated businesses from the beautiful and diverse wine regions throughout the state. Wine Institute works to create an environment where the wine community can flourish and contribute in a positive fashion to our nation, state and local communities. For information please contact communications@wineinstitute.org.