(NBBJ) -  Thanks to an early start to the 2014 North Coast winegrape season and moderate temperatures with serious weather issues in between, harvest started and wrapped early throughout the region, and tonnage appears to be larger than average over the past several years but smaller than last year’s record-breaker.

The winegrape harvest in Sonoma County was about 90 percent done last week, with the remaining red varieties set to come in from Alexander Valley vines by Oct. 20, according to Karissa Kruse, president of trade group Sonoma County Winegrowers.

“What’s out there is probably ready but waiting for tank space at the winery,” she said. The county’s crop overall could be 15 percent to 25 percent lighter than the record 268,000 tons brought in last year.

In Napa County, harvest crews are moving toward a finish in mid-October, according to trade association Napa Valley Grapegrowers. The yield is expected to be on par with that of last two years, according to Allison Cellini, a viticulturist with Renteria Vineyard Management, and Paul Goldberg, vineyard manager for Bettinelli Vineyards, speaking at a harvest news conference Thursday by the trade group. Napa County tonnages were 173,000 tons last year and 183,000 in 2012.

“There is a lot of dogma out there on yields and wine quality, but we have seen yields in the past two years were fantastic,” Mr. Goldberg said. “This year we’re seeing tremendous quality.”