For some people this time of year is all about hoodies, campfires and pumpkin spice everything, but for one local business it’s about something else: Grapes.

This is the time of year that the grapes at Blue Lizard Winery and Vineyard ripen. Recently employees and friends gathered at the winery and over two days harvested Ives and Concord grapes from the vineyard’s 1,700 vines.

The barrels of harvested grapes were then fed through a machine that crushed and de-stemmed the grapes into a purple, bubbling mush. After checking the sugar level, which is added to affect the alcohol level more than the sweetness, and adding yeast, it becomes a waiting game while the fermentation process occurs.

After about a week, the mixture is pressed to get as much liquid as possible. The liquid is then pumped into a stainless steel vat where it sits for months. Then it is moved to a different vat to remove any sediment that settles. This is done a few times until the wine is ready after about a year.

Brian Seitz, one of the owners of the winery, said that they taste the wine at each stage, which isn’t a bad thing.