Third Vintage in Qvevri

In early October we had an offer to harvest Vidal grapes at Harvest Ridge Winery in Marydel, Delaware. Vidal was one of the white grape varieties that I had wanted to try in our qvevri. Previous vintages includes Muscat from Lodi and Rkatsiteli from Central Virginia. We did not harvest those grapes. Jason Hopwood, vineyard […]

Ancient World Winemaking in Maryland

Early spring marks the time when a white wine made in a buried qvevri is opened. This week we opened our 2015 Rkatsiteli after macerating on the skins and a few stems for six months. For a bit of a recap. We sourced the grapes from a Virginia winery in September. Fermentation was robust overflowing […]

2014 Bordeaux Blend at Tin Lizzie Wineworks

We filled the press with the must.

Our enthusiasm over making our first qvevri wine in the United States obscures the other wines that we are making with this years fruit. For the third time we are making wine at Tin Lizzie Wineworks in Clarksville, Maryland. We bottled the 2012 Stagecoach Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon […]

Harvesting Viognier in Maryland

Kathy and I had an opportunity to harvest Viognier at Catoctin Breeze Vineyard in Thurmont, Maryland last week. It was our second harvest this year. Our first experience was harvesting the red grape Lenoir at Messina Hof in Bryan, Texas. The Viognier grapes were just a tad more challenging to pick. Because of their light […]

A Row of Petit Manseng?

We decided to plant a row of Petit Manseng. We tasted several wines made from this varietal grape at different Virginia wineries. At the 2010 Drink Local Wine Conference held in Virginia, Petit Manseng was mentioned as a promising grape to grow in that state. In tastings, we discovered that is can be harvested in […]