It has been a while and it seems like this harvest is going to be long and hectic.  We almost finished harvesting all the whites, and thus far we are experiencing very nice and gentle fermentations.  Touch wood only one slightly stinky but nothing that some aeration couldn't take care. 
The past three weeks were very problematic for the growers.  Due to the Ramadan  (the Muslims holly month), it was difficult to find pickers and the few that came could not work long hours because they were fasting.  On top of it due to the effort to fight the grapevine virus we have here in Israel, more and more growers preferred hand picking rather than mechanical harvesting to prevent contamination through the machines (it has'nt been prove yet, but precautions were taken).  Ramadan will end at the eve of Rosh ha'Shana and we will be back to normal again, this is what we call coexistence in Israel.
The way it looks now everything will be ripe at the same time during the high holydays and we will be under a lot of pressure to pick all the grapes (we call it the Murphy laws of harvest). 
We are starting to get a picture of the quality of this harvest.  It is not a huge year with full bodied, over ripe, alcoholic wines.  This year expect low alcohol, elegant fruit, and finesse in the Israeli wines.  To tell you the truth I prefer it like this. 
So we are back to work, to the long hours, to the bad dreams about stuck fermentations and the nightmares of leaking tanks, I will keep you posted