Veraison: The Turning of the Grapes
Wine emblem sculpted from polymer clay, depicting veraison of red grapes — Artwork by Melanie Wynne
Tendrils of excitement have been snaking their way across Sonoma County this past week, as veraison (“vehr-ray-zohn”) is at last upon us. As depicted in my polymer clay wine emblem above, veraison is the period in a grapevine’s annual lifecycle when hard, opaque green grapes begin to ripen, swelling with water and sugars. Green varietals like Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc simply become more translucent, while the berries of red varietals such as Cabernet Franc, Zinfandel, and Pinot Noir transition to, well…red.
