Domaine Della 2023 Soberanes Vineyard Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir Takes Top Prize  November 18, 2025 — Winners have been announced in the 2025 Harvest Challenge Wine Competition. After two spirited days of judging, Domaine Della 2023 Soberanes Vineyard Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir took the top prize. It was also awarded Best of Show Red Wine and Best of Monterey County AVA. Coming in at 98 points, judges praised the wine as “warm and spicy” with “fig and nutmeg.” Other descriptors included “meaty,” “prosciutto,” and “dried rose petal.”  With entries from across the globe, the Harvest Challenge bases judging on a group of vineyards (or even vines) from the same region, belonging to a specific appellation and sharing the same type of soil, weather conditions and grapes that combine to give personality to the wine.  In other competitions, this terroir is ignored. At the Harvest Challen

After a record winter and spring, with much-needed rainfall and below-average temperatures, the growing season started slower this year, putting predictions for the start of harvest closer to the “norm.” Vine and grape development are showing about one to two weeks behind a normal year (depending on the appellation and vineyard) and around three weeks behind the last few drought-impacted growing seasons. Accurate predictions for harvest rely heavily on favorable weather during August, with hopes that growth progress will quicken slightly.  Bloom was met with cool, misty weather, but the vines are looking healthy, and the 2023 crop is shaping up for what should be an average-size year, with expected yields getting back on par with pre-drought sizes. With steadily climbing temperatures during July, veraison has just started in some of the warmer, northern areas of the county, with the rest of the region eagerly awaiting its arrival.  Alexander Valley  “Th