Mirror photo by Gary M. Baranec Winemaker Scott Schraff draws spiced apple wine to test for taste and clarity Wednesday at Oak Spring Winery in Altoona.

Local wineries are toasting last month’s warm, dry weather, which was a boon to the wine grape crop. ‘‘It gave us that little extra bit of hang time to get the grapes to mature before we picked them,’’ said Jean Manspeaker, who owns Briar Valley Vineyard & Winery in Bedford with her husband, Tod. ‘‘There was some concern that they’d have not ripened completely and we’d have to pick them because of the cold weather.’’ Weather has a major impact on each year’s grape crop, said Mark Chien, a Pennsylvania viticulture extension educator based in Lancaster County. Warm, dry years make fine wines, while wet, cool years pose more difficulty. ‘‘Vineyards require well-drained soils and little rain, particularly during the last third of any vintage, which is the most critical time for wine,’’ Chien said. ‘‘It is during this time that the vines focus on ripening the fruit and not on growing leaves, a process hindered by the rain.