This picking knife, used by a vineyard worker in 1996-97 at Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars in California’s Napa Valley, has a hard plastic handle, a curved and serrated metal blade, and a leather wrist strap. While different designs for picking knives may be preferred in other winegrowing regions, this model is typical of Napa pickers. They use the knife to cull grapes midway through the growing season, a practice that limits the crop and concentrates flavor; they also use these knives to harvest the crop when the grapes are ripe. Pickers often customize the blades of their knives, adjusting the length of the blade, changing the arc of the curve, or sharpening it to suit their particular work style.
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