Decades ago, a certain intellectual curiosity led me to Virginia to grow winegrapes. That curiosity has not waned. Initial plantings in the 1980s and 1990s where established with great enthusiasm, but without much knowledge or experience. I am now very familiar and even intimate with the soils and slopes on this small farm.
Read MoreThis first week of the New Year, as is our custom, we started blending trials for the 2016 Reds. We have some great material to work with as the ripeness and quality of the grapes was the best in recent memory.
Read MorePossibly unique to the winegrowing trade is the time honored site visit. This is where one winery operation visits another with the intention of sharing information, walking the vineyards and tasting the wines.
Read MoreJonathan and I just spread 24 tons of chicken litter on land that will eventually become Cabernet Sauvignon. Perhaps not one of the more romantic aspects of vine growing...
Read MoreReflecting our respect for the seasons, we are now in rest mode with a self imposed ban on doing anything of importance.
Read MoreWe’re pulling out. But don’t worry. Although I’ve always been intrigued by Nova Scotia viticulture, I’m not moving to Canada. We’re pulling out vines. Quite a lot of vines.
Read MoreEven after all these years (this was vintage 37 for me), I remain a bit stunned as to how quickly all the frenetic activity of crush comes to a halt. The cellar seems to have an echo. No more bubbling or humming of a fan, a heater, or a chilling system.
Read MoreNot quite done, but the cellar feels cavernous now as most of the red fermentation bins have been drained and the wines rest in barrels. The empty bins have been thoroughly washed and sent back to storage in the barn loft. Room to move never felt so luxurious.
Read MoreThe fog of crush is lifting, so there is time for a bit of reflection on the harvest and the potential nature of the wines from vintage 2016. At this phase it is difficult to objectively evaluate the wines, however we have a good general sense of what we can expect.
Read MorePetit Verdot is an obscure grape variety that came to us from Bordeaux. In Bordeaux it has historically played a very minor role in left bank blends.
Read MoreMany of the red wine lots have finished their fermentations and are now dry. The bins and tanks have been “buttoned up” and sealed to exclude any air (oxygen). This stage called “post-fermentation maceration”.
Read MoreToday is the first day of “drain and press” for some of our red wines. Some bins of fermented red grapes are now wine and it is time to separate the wine from the skins. We do this first by pumping the wine off of the skins through a colander-like screen.
Read MoreYesterday’s picking of Petit Manseng was our earliest harvest date since we planted the variety in 2002. We’ve always made the wine in a Late Harvest style, but this year that style would not be appropriate.
Read MoreI was hoping that yesterday would be the last day of crush for the reds, but we couldn’t quite do it all. We started the day picking.
Read MoreIt may be a bit premature, but there is a sense that the end is in site. I’ll probably feel differently when I go back to the cellar to try to figure out how we are going to manage the rest of the week.
Read MoreFrom Wednesday evening through Saturday we had over four inches of rain. Conditions were damp, but cool throughout this period. Yesterday, once the sun came out, I mustered up the courage to walk the vineyard blocks that we were not able to harvest pre-rain.
Read MorePump-overs and punch downs are at a critical stage now, as the reds are at their peak of fermentation. Every twelve hours decisions are made as to what level of extraction each bin requires. By shear necessity these decisions are made quickly and intuitively.
Read MoreWe are taking a break after a tremendously exhausting, but satisfying week. Break is relative. While harvest and crush are on hold as gloomy weather still prevails, the cellar is very much alive and needs a lot of attention.
Read MoreA cascade of red grapes and fermenters are filling the the cellar at a pace I have never experienced. We have harvested 80% of our entire red wine production in 6 days. Red harvest usually spans 3 weeks.
Read MoreI’m sure records were broken as to the shear quantity (not to mention quality!) of grapes we picked yesterday. The rain teased us from the very beginning, but a good part of the day was rain free until the very end when we all got soaking wet.
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