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 A few days after pruning my grapevines, Kathy and I went to the experimental vineyard at Tin Lizzie Wineworks in Clarksville, Maryland and helped to prune those vines. The vines were planted late spring of 2010. We used blue grow tubes to protect the tender vines. Throughout the growing season, the local deer population kept the vines pruned at the top of the grow tubes. Rob Pearre, vineyard manager, demonstrated how he wanted the vines pruned. He told us to cut off any branches below the graft. We also reduced the number of branches above the graft to one and pruned it just above the first bud. Rob wants just one branch to grow from the graft. Next month he plans to install deer fencing.
While pruning, a herd of deer bounced across the farm. Thirteen deer stopped and in unison watched the few vineyard workers. It seemed that they were concerned that we were in their vineyard. After a while they glided away into the woods leaving no wonder that they planned to return when we weren’t looking. The grow tubes will protect the vines and the vineyard will have further protection once the fence is installed.
In all, Kathy and I worked on over 80 vines in the couple hours we spent in the vineyard. The weather was perfect, sunny and in the upper fifties with just a gentle breeze. We had to repair or replace a few stakes and tie the grow tubes to the bottom of the stakes so they wouldn’t blow off. We are thankful for a small vineyard here in Howard County where we can volunteer and work. It is peaceful and a pleasant way to spend a Saturday morning. I’m beginning to become anxious to see the vineyard grow. So are the deer.
Cheers,
Terry
We are nearing the end of a lazy winter. I didn’t do any work with my vines during the colder than normal December, January and February. March has turned out to finally warm up and I decided that I had better prune the vines.
The Dornfelder vines are providing a roof over a patio. Dornfelder vines were used for the patio covering because we observed Dornfelder covering a side of a building at Fulkerson Winery along Seneca Lake in New York. However if I were to redo the roof idea I would us Niagara vines instead. Niagara grows quickly and has larger leaves. It would provide more shade in a shorter period of time. However it is nice to sit on the patio and watch verasion with the Dornfelder grapes.
Although this winter was consistently colder than average for three months, I pruned less of the Dornfelder than last year. There is now more of an infrastructure of vines covering the roof area of the patio.
We have four Niagara vines transplanted from Kathy’s homestead. I didn’t spare those vines as I hacked away merrily. I did experience cutting off some older vines and let younger vines take their place.
With only six vines, I had the luxury to wait till the third week of March to prune the vines. I can imagine with acres of vines, the need to spend every possible day during January and February pruning.
Cheers.
Terry
On January 20th at 5:30 pm, forty Howard County bloggers and blog readers will meet at the Second Chance Saloon in Columbia, MD. Hocoblogs.com sponsors the gathering. Hocoblogs.com has a list of many blogs originating in Howard County. The event is co-hosted by 53 Beers on Tap and Computer Blues.
Since this blog is dedicated to the journey of winemaking, I was interested in looking at the wine list at Second Chance Saloon. Their website’s menu lists appetizers, salads, burgers, sandwiches, pasta, plates and beer. No mention of wine though. My first thought however is the saying that “it takes a lot of beer to make a good wine.” Winemakers frequently mention this quote. Perhaps winemakers enjoy beer while working 16-hour days during the initial winemaking process. Those days the work is hard and often the temperatures are warm to hot. A cold beer sounds great.
Other winemakers are quick to point out that “wine is made in the vineyard.” That leads to pondering if a great wine is made in a vineyard or a result of consuming some quantity of beer. What are your thoughts?
Cheers,
Terry
 Last night we had the first vine clinging snowfall of the year. Factoids may argue that it was our fourth snowfall. The first was an inch but didn’t cling to the vines. The second and third snowfalls measured trace if that much again with no clinging to the vines. Last night’s snowfall not only was able to cling to the vines but painted a picture of a sparkling diamond blanket covering the vines. I’ve come to appreciate a winter vineyard scene as much as a harvest vineyard scene.
It seems fitting to have the vines snow covered. So much energy is put forth to create grapes that vines seem to need a rest. They are resting peacefully now. Late next month I’ll prune them. The cycle begins again.
Cheers,
Terry
After looking at successes and failures of the 2010 resolutions it is now time to be more realistic about the 2011 winemaking resolutions. After some thought, here is what Kathy and I would like to accomplish during the year.
1. Learn to clarify, filter and sweeten the Muscat wine prior to bottling.
2. Bottle the case of Cab at Vint Hill Craft Winery.
3. Bottle the Petite Syrah in a carboy at home.
4. Get a yield of grapes greater than 15 pounds from our Niagara vines. Make Niagara wine. Rent or borrow a press and end up with more than 3/4 gallon of juice.
What are your winemaking resolutions for 2011?
Cheers,
Terry
January is a great time to make resolutions even about winemaking. I did this at the beginning of 2010 and thought I check to see how I did before making 2011 winemaking resolutions.
1. Bottle a Cab/Tannat blend. This will be an east meets west wine: Virginia Tannat and California Cabernet Sauvignon. Did this in August. My youngest son was married in August and guests at our house helped determine the Cab/Tannat blend. By December this wine was really good.
2. Bottle the Cab at Tin Lizzie Wineworks. We didn’t get to bottle our Cab when our group was assigned to bottle it since it was bottled during the time of our son’s wedding. I did however cover another group’s bottling and am familiar with the process used at Tin Lizzie Wineworks. We picked up our 5 cases a few days after the wedding. Everyone who has tasted this wine likes it and my five cases are dwindling.
3. Determine if the barrel of Cab at Vint Hill Craft Winery should be bottled during 2010 or if additional aging will benefit the wine. In August of 2010 we tasted the wine and noticed the harsh tannins. We decided to go with the extra aging. We are in no rush for this wine. By the time we bottle, it will have been in barrel 18 to 21 months.
4. Make a raspberry/mead melomel. Failed on this resolution. Our crop of raspberries was good however the carboys were full at the time and the idea slipped away.
5. Perhaps make a Sauvignon Blanc that is fruit forward with tropical fruit aromas and tastes. Failed to make a Sauvignon Blanc, however Kathy is making a Muscat.
6. Kathy wants to make a peach wine. One of my all-time favorite fruit wines was a dry peach wine. Didn’t happen in 2010 because of a busy August and travel in September, October and November.
Not bad, only two of the resolutions did not happen and we have a Muscat rather than a Sauvignon Blanc. I’m glad that we made the decision to age the Cab at Vint Hill another year. I’m equally happy about how well the Cab/Tannat blend and the Cab made at Tin Lizzie were so well received. The melomel can be put off until another time as well as the peach wine. Next summer we’ll have Muscat to drink.
How did you do with your 2010 winemaking resolutions?
The small amount of wine (less than a gallon) we made from our few Niagara vines was ready to bottle. It had been in the refrigerator for three months and we needed the space for the extra food that the Holidays require. During that time the wine cleared. Since I fermented the juice to dry, I needed to sweeten it. There is a lot of advice on how to do this and with what. A winemaker suggested using Splenda.
I did what research I could find on the use of Splenda to sweeten wine. There seems to be a mixed bag of information. Basically, Splenda will not cause fermentation in its present form. Although some people may be able to tell the difference in taste, many will not. The possible negative of using Splenda is aging the wine. It is believed, by some, that the enzymes in the wine will break down the Splenda into fermentable sugars. Since the few bottles I made won’t stay around long enough to age this shouldn’t be a problem.
I added enough Splenda to raise the sweetness to four percent, 40 grams per liter. This made the wine softer in the mouth and brought out some of the fruit and floral character common with the Niagara grape. Of note was the wine’s very long aftertaste lasting for several minutes. The Niagara taste reminded me of the taste one has after eating the fresh grapes. I’ve asked some of our guests what type of wine it was and they pointed to the Niagara vines. They must have tasted the grapes in late August.
So far I liked using the Splenda. It dissolved quickly and doesn’t seem to have an off taste. I will have to keep an eye on the wine to check for any refermentation, however the wine may not last that long.
Cheers,
Terry
 When traveling, it is nice to take wine with you. On a trek to New Zealand we took four bottles of our 2009 Illuminatus a Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot blend made at Tin Lizzie Wineworks. So far we gave a bottle to Mike Spratt at Destiny Bay Vineyards on Waiheke Island and drank a bottle with new friends, Diane and Gary Forristall while in Napier. Diane and Gary own a vineyard and make wine in Iowa. The other two bottles will be used next week.
Pearmund Cellars in Virginia has a photo album in their tasting room. The album has photos of a Pearmund Cellars wine that traveled to places around the world. I thought this was a great idea, so I’m beginning a photo album recording in pictures the travels of the Illuminatus label. The photo on the right shows the wine with Hawke’s Bay in the background. This is about 9000 miles from where the wine was made. Hope to get a couple more photos next week.
How far has your wine traveled?
Cheers
Terry
It was time to rack Kathy’s Muscat. She had it settling in two three-gallon carboys and the sediment was piling up. She decided to rack the wine before our New Zealand wineries trip. The wine was already beginning to clear a little and the gook on the bottom was notieable. Realizing that we wouldn’t get a full six gallons, it was decided to rack the two three-gallon carboys into a five-gallon carboy and place any extray wine in a half-gallon jug. We have a lovely glass half-gallon jug from Garrett’s Winery. The opening is large enough for an airlock.
Rather than racking wine all the way to the surface of the sediment, Kathy satyed about a half-inch or more away. We later transferred the remaining wine, down to the sediment level, into a bottle and quickly noticed the overwelming yeast aroma. That was eventually discarded.
A taste during the process indicated some floral notes on the aroma and a hint of orange on the taste. The wine was very dry, so I experimented adding some sugar to see what would happen. The most noticeable affect of the sugar was a softening of the wine. It became velvety. At the time, the sugar didn’t have an effect on the aroma or taste other than being a bit sweeter. We are going to have to learn how to gage how much sugar to add to the wine before bottling. For now, we are leaving it alone and letting it age, settle and perhaps clear up some more.
Cheers,
Terry
While racking the Muscat and Petite Sirah from the fermentation bins into carboys, I decided to rack the Niagara. Since I have less than a gallon of Niagara, I racked it into a ½ gallon and 1 quart jugs. While racking I tasted the wine. It is golden in color and has a very floral aroma. The first comment on the taste is that it is dry, very dry. It has the typical Niagara fruit taste.
After the primary fermentation, I put this wine in the refrigerator since it was such a small quantity. It is now quite clear and looks wonderful in a glass. My plans are to keep it in the refrigerator until Christmas. I’ll sweeten it a bit and serve it on Christmas day. It should be a big hit. This is the first wine I’ve made with grapes that I grew. As a result, it is special and having it on Christmas day seems fitting.
Of course I’ve learned some lessons. In the vineyard, I have to start my spraying program earlier. I’ll also have to harvest later if possible. Harvest timing is not just grape and weather related, travel also impacts harvest timing. For pressing, I have to purchase a small press since the feet process didn’t extract as much juice as I hoped. Next year, I look forward to a larger production of grapes and more juice.
Cheers,
Terry
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What Makes a Great Wine?
On January 20th at 5:30 pm, forty Howard County bloggers and blog readers will meet at the Second Chance Saloon in Columbia, MD. Hocoblogs.com sponsors the gathering. Hocoblogs.com has a list of many blogs originating in Howard County. The event is co-hosted by 53 Beers on Tap and Computer Blues.
Since this blog is dedicated to the journey of winemaking, I was interested in looking at the wine list at Second Chance Saloon. Their website’s menu lists appetizers, salads, burgers, sandwiches, pasta, plates and beer. No mention of wine though. My first thought however is the saying that “it takes a lot of beer to make a good wine.” Winemakers frequently mention this quote. Perhaps winemakers enjoy beer while working 16-hour days during the initial winemaking process. Those days the work is hard and often the temperatures are warm to hot. A cold beer sounds great.
Other winemakers are quick to point out that “wine is made in the vineyard.” That leads to pondering if a great wine is made in a vineyard or a result of consuming some quantity of beer. What are your thoughts?
Cheers,
Terry