FRONT PAGE
JANUARY 2012


Ironstone Vineyards

COLUMNISTS


Sorensen's Resort


Acupressure Massage


Red Johnson's Novel


HCG shop online


New York Fitness


Comanche Hills Sportsman Dinner House & Lounge


Broadway Sacramento

 

 

 

From the Vine 
By Gary and Sue Grant
Frog 's Tooth Vineyards
 
www.frogstooth.com

Visit Frog's Tooth Tasting Room, 380 Main Street, Ste 5, Murphys, CA  Fri-Mon, 11-5. Frogs Tooth

FROM THE VINE columns:
Sensory Response to Wine  January 2011
Work in the Vineyard  March 2011
Spring Chores   April 2011
Sweet Wines  May 2011
Rose Expose  June 2011
How I Spent My Summer Vacation  July 2011
Sierra Foothill Wines  August 2011
Harvest Time  September 2011
Picking Grapes  October 2011
The Winemaking Begins  Nov 2011
Press, Barrel, and Rack  Dec 2011

ARCHIVES
2008 From the Vine columns
2009 From the Vine columns
2010 From the Vine columns


Press, Barrel, and Rack

A few months ago I was joking with some friends that, because of the cooler summer and the late ripening of grapes, I would probably still be working on this year’s harvest on Christmas. Guess what, it’s nearly Christmas and I’m still working on this year’s harvest! Guess the joke is on me…I honestly thought that I would be snuggling up at home with a roaring fire in the fireplace, a good book, my dog Rascal by my side, relaxing with a glass or two of wine. (Such a lovely picture, a boy, his dog, and a glass of wine. What about me, the winery wife?). Okay, a fire, a book, my dog, a glass of wine and YOU, SUE, THE WONDER WIFE! (That’s better, still would have been nice to be listed before the dog, though). Let’s get back to the story…

I thought I would be done with harvest by now. However, Mother Nature did not cooperate. Fruit came in late; as a matter of fact, I received the last of my fruit around Thanksgiving. Fermentations were longer than usual due to the cooler climate. Normally, a week to ten days fermenting in bins turned into 3 weeks or more in some cases. My last press load was just a few days ago. I still have wine in tank that needs to be barreled and wines in barrel that need to be racked.

It sounds fairly straight forward, press, barrel, and rack. But, for me as well as for other small wineries, it can be a complicated logistical problem. In a "normal" year, fruit comes in at varying intervals that allows for staggered pressing, barreling and racking. There is time between press loads to fill and empty holding tanks before the next press load. However, when fruit harvest is delayed it seems like everything gets harvested at the same time leading to non-stop crushing and then fermenting. The cooler weather means that our outdoor bin fermentations take longer and, again, everything seems to come due at the same time. We have a limited amount of holding tanks so some fermenting musts get pressed to the holding tanks and some get pressed directly to barrel.

To rack the wines from the barrel requires that the barrels be emptied into a holding tank or into yet more barrels. It takes quite a balancing act to move wine from tank to barrel to free up the tanks so that other wines can be moved from barrel to tank. Throw in the white wines that we ferment in stainless steel and another layer of complexity is added. (Sounds like quite the juggling act. Maybe you should be in the circus or get a job as a supply Sergeant. It seems like a lot of organization skills are needed. How come you can organize the winery but you can’t get organized at home? Just sayin…) Don’t go there, woman.

Anyway, it has been a challenge for me this year. With any luck I should be through the barreling and racking stage of my 2011 wines just before Santa makes his way down the chimney. (What makes you think Santa will be coming down the chimney with a roaring fire in the fireplace? Besides, I’m not sure where you fall on his naughty or nice list. As for me, NICE, OF COURSE!) Sue and I were originally going to write this article on what we learned during the year. Since I’m still learning we thought it would be a good to kick off January 2012 with a retrospect of 2011. Believe me, we have lots of fodder to look at. For now, we would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May you all have a safe and sane holiday season.

Until next time, Gary and Sue. Drop us a line and let us know what’s on your mind… fromthevine@pacbell.net or to PO Box 897, Sutter Creek, CA 95685.

"Age is just a number. It's totally irrelevant unless, of course, you happen to be a bottle of wine." Joan Collins

Back to Top


The Winemaking Begins

Last month we raved about the fun we have harvesting grapes after the growers finish their part in getting the wine grapes to the winemaker. Now it’s time for the winemakers to do their own part in getting the wine to the consumer.

Here we are in the middle of November, just a turkey feather away from pressed and barreled. Foothill vintners in the last few years have seen the winemaking side of the process extend further and further into the last months of the year. Blame the cool summers (More days to drink beer, though!). Fruit takes longer to ripen on the vine and subsequently takes longer to get to the winemaker. Cooler temperatures also slow fermentation. Those little yeast guys are no fools. They drag their little white feet when it’s too cold. But, I’m getting ahead of myself.

What exactly happens once the fruit is delivered to the winery, you ask? Well, let’s take a peek at the Frog’s Tooth winery. Sleep, sleep: remember last month…fruit was just delivered to the winery in ½ ton macro bins. Watch us unload the fruit from the trailer with a forklift. See us scoot over to our 5, 000 lbs. floor scale (printer attached). Note the bin tare weight (unloaded) at 93-97 lbs. Subtract this from the gross weight and create a weigh bill ("Why, daddy?") 1.) Give the grower an accurate amount to bill, and 2.) Give the winemaker a weight to record for the State of California and the Federal Government and to calculate the correct amount of any required additions.

Weigh the bins: winemaking begins. For white wine or a rose, vintners may pass the grapes through a destemmer/crusher to separate the grapes from the stems and crush the berries. Many wineries, us included, skip the destemmer/crusher for white wines and roses and put the fruit directly into the wine press. No crushing equals less contact between grape skin and juice which equals less color in the wine. The press gently squeezes the juice from the grapes (Sigh, sounds cozy). Then we pump this juice into a container to ferment. Depending on the de-sired style of wine, we use a stainless steel tank, a barrel or a poly tank. We test the juice for pH, tartaric acid, and brix (the amount of sugar in the juice). (Yes, children, there will be a comprehension test later.) Based on these readings we may add water or tartaric acid. We also may add commercial yeast or use the native yeast resident on the grapes. The yeast converts sugar into alcohol. Sometimes the yeast needs help so yeast food is added, too (Available in chocolate flavor?).

Red wine fruit is usually run through the destemmer/crusher to separate the stems, crush the berries slightly, and ease fermentation. While no color is desirable in white wines, color, caused by the juice’s contact with the grape skins and seeds, is very important in red wines. So, we crush the red grapes and put them into some sort of fermentation vessel/container. We, like many smaller boutique wineries, use clean ½ ton macro bins for our fermentation vessel. The crushed grapes stay in the bin for a week or longer to ferment. Again, we test pH, TA and brix to determine any necessary additions. We add more yeast and yeast food and fermentation continues. Unlike white or rose wines, red wines require they must to be "punched down" 2-3 times per day during the initial fermentation process. If Pilates isn’t your thing then try punch-downs – guaranteed to build muscles and make you sweat.

Once the red grapes reach the desired level of fermentation we dump the must into the press and gently squeeze the juice out, into either a stainless steel container, a poly tank or a barrel. The juice settles for a day or so and is then put into barrels for long term fermentation and aging. Periodically, we take the wine out of the tank or barrel. Then we do a rub a dub-dub on the containers to clean them and pump the wine back in. We call this "racking". Racking removes the sediment that collects at the bottom of the tank/barrel and helps prevent unwanted flavors and aromas in the wine (Ugh, sounds nasty!). When next we meet we’ll fast forward a year or so and see what happens to the aging (gracefully) wine.

Have a very Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy your family, friends and a good glass of wine. Until next time, Gary and Sue

Drop us a line and let us know what’s on your mind; fromthevine@pacbell.net or to Editor, PO Box 897, Sutter Creek, CA 95685

If food is the body of good living, wine is its soul. - Clifton Fadiman

Back to Top


Picking Grapes

Darkness lingers tentatively in the vineyard. Bands of first light as tenuous as angel hair slide over the nearby hillocks. The almost imperceptible swoosh of bat wings that beat the predawn air announce the fading of night and herald approaching sunrise. The smell of native ironweed competes with the heady aromas of Grenache and Tempranillo berries already fermenting in the half ton bins (macro bins). The yeasts in these containers are working, breaking down sugars and leaving hints of berry, cherry, spicy pepper and, of course, alcohol.

The yellow jackets that are addicted to the fragrances and that tiptoe around everything on their miniscule insect feet are sleeping now. Grape harvesters, however, are not. Over the hill and down the road in a caravan they come. Cutting head lamps dance; tractors throb; tools glisten; muscles flex; greetings and jibes fly. Welcome to grape harvest.

So what do you need to have and to do and to know to bring in your grape crop? As you might expect the answers vary greatly depending on the size of your vineyard. Twenty plants need at least two people (one to cut off the grape clusters and one to pour the beer). Three or four or five good size buckets will hold your crop nicely, depending on Mother Nature’s bounty and your own vineyard management expertise. If you have a slightly larger planting you add to the number of pickers exponentially and you still need at least one person to pour the beer.

We’ve talked about harvesting before but the more one does it the more one learns. For ex-ample, from last year we learned that it is no fun to harvest in the rain. It’s wet, cold, miserable, and water gets into the grape bins. Great if you are selling the fruit by weight but not so great for the quality of the fruit after it sits for a while. We also learned that if you intend to pick in the dark (which we have done several times. Why? Because the pickers would prefer to be done with picking before the heat of the afternoon zaps all of their energy.) It’s best to use head lamps and start with the red fruit. It’s easier to see. Otherwise, daylight reveals the missed clusters and additional time is spent re-picking the vine rows.

Picking in the dark is also good if you have an abundance of yellow jackets in the vine-yard. You can get in and out before they wake up. Of course, they get a little peeved when they find out all of their fruit is gone and aggressively seek out its new locale. Unfortunately that means the macro bins in which it is now sitting. Most winemakers can attest to the tenacity of a yellow jacket and can spin tales of the many stings, bites, swollen hands and other body parts as they compete -- mano y insect.

At Frog’s Tooth, we have about 9.5 acres, too much for one person (or two people - the beer guy or gal) to harvest alone. We use a labor crew that comes up from Lodi to help us harvest. We have used this same crew since 2004. They are very efficient and know our vine-yard. We start at 4am or 5am. Most, if not all, of the vineyards in the foothills are harvested by hand. The terrain is such that mechanical harvesting is not an option. If you’ve never experienced a grape harvest you should put that on your bucket list. It’s quite amazing-ok, maybe not as amazing as climbing Mt Everest, or seeing the Taj Mahal, but interesting anyway.

Harvesting our vineyard goes something like this; a group of 6-8 guys (sometimes more and sometimes there may be a few gals, too) show up pre-dawn, around O dark thirty. With 40-pound picking lugs in hand, they don their head lamps, sterilize their clippers and head for the designated picking area. One person per row, they work their way down the line on the hunt for their illusive quarry. The grapes are cut and deposited into the picking lug that they slide down the row with their foot. A tractor with a bin trailer carrying 2 one-half ton macro bins slowly moves down the center of the vineyard between the pickers.

As the lugs fill up they are passed under the vines toward the center to the awaiting tractor. The bins are received and dump-ed into the macro bins and the empty bin is passed back to the picker. Several individuals are assigned to pick out leaves, un-desirable grapes and other foreign objects from the macro bins as the tractor moves slowly down the line keeping pace with the pickers.

When the two macro bins are full, a second tractor with two new bins slides in behind the first tractor ready for the next deposit of full lugs. The first tractor then moves out of the vineyard to the grape bin drop off point, picks up two more empty bins and heads back to the vineyard to keep the cycle going. This goes on until all of the scheduled fruit is harvested. Next time we’ll tell you what happens next…Until next time, Gary and Sue

Drop us a line and let us know what’s on your mind… fromthevine@pacbell.net or PO Box 897, Sutter Creek, CA 95685

"Who took the cork out of my lunch?" W.C. Fields

Back to Top


Harvest Time!

Hello, fellow wine lovers, and welcome to the busiest month of the vintner’s year. It’s September and it’s HARVEST TIME! The vineyards and wineries are aflutter with activity and I am hip deep in picking, pressing, crushing, etc. (The etc includes eating bratwurst and drinking beer. It takes a lot of beer to produce a barrel of wine.) While composing the following tasty comments (Remember ladies, with these guys it’s all about the old tumtum) and remembering last September’s harvest article I got that feeling of deja vu. Some of the points from 2007 were so pertinent that they merited repetition. (Plus, he was so sated with dogs and suds that his brain was on pause mode.)

Some of you who have walked the aisles of your local produce market and squeezed a few tomatoes may wonder how we know when it is time to pick the fruit. I’m tempted to say it’s magic and have you all gaze at me with slack jawed awe but this is the season for sharing so I will let you in on field tests and laboratory tests.

Field tests are generally begun after the grapes go through verasion (The official definition of véraison is "change of color of the grape berries"). Véraison signifies the change from berry growth to berry ripe-ning in grapevines. One of the field tests that are conducted is to check the brix (sugar level) of the grape berries. The grower and/or winemaker walk the vine-yard and randomly select berries while trying not to focus on any particular color or size of fruit. All the berries, not just the juiciest and most brilliantly colored ones, will wind up in the barrel so a balanced representation is required.

The chosen berries are dropped
into a plastic baggie and crushed. A few drops of the resulting juice is placed onto the business end of an instrument called a refractometer. This handy device allows the user to look into its eyepiece (Oh, that sounds decidedly Transylvanian. Admit it, we all have thought of Count Dracula as a mildly sexy guy. Something about that black cape.) which reveals a scale calibrated in degrees brix. The higher the number, the more sugar in the juice. As the berry ripens, the brix level will rise. Another less technical indicator of ripeness is the color of the seeds. Less ripened grapes will have green seeds and ripe grapes will have brown seeds. (Of course, dear, any hardworking sparrow could tell you that.)

The most common laboratory tests revolve around acid (titratable acidity or TA), and pH (No, that is not a printer’s error - he is serious about that lower case "p" and the upper case "H". Don’t ask him why or he will get sidetracked and never finish his ripeness dissertation.) The key to knowing when to harvest is to find the optimal balance between brix, TA and pH. One can argue what is optimal but in general, the optimum brix is around 22, TA 0.60 to 0.80 for reds and 0.65 to 0.85 for whites.

While this might sound easy, it is very difficult to co-ordinate a harvest where all three of these elements are in their optimal positions. It is more common to find only one or two of these elements at their prime at one time. This is where the winemaker’s skills come into play in syncing up these elements during the winemaking process. Water may be added to bring down sugar levels, tartaric acid maybe added to raise acidity and lower pH. We can talk about the effects sugar, acid and pH have on the wine another time. Suffice it to say each has its purpose.

All of these tests are important but one of the most important tests is conducted utilizing one of the most complex instruments ever created. The test is TASTE and the instrument is your mouth and tongue. Taste is often "The indicator that best defines the right time to pick. Until next time, Gary and Sue

Send us your comments, favorite recipes, and stories to fromthevine@pacbell.net or write to us c/o Gold Country Times, PO Box 897, Sutter Creek, CA 95685

"Wine had such ill effects on Noah’s health that it was all he could do to live 950 years. Show me a total abstainer that ever lived that long." - Will Rogers

Back to Top


Sierra Foothill Wines

Waaahoooo! Way to go Sierra Foothill wineries…What a showing at the 2011 California State Fair Wine Competition. Yes, folks, in case you haven’t heard, the Sierra Foothill wine producers came away with an astounding 51 gold or double gold awards in this year’s wine com-petition! We are often overlooked as a wine region and overshadowed by our neighbor regions to the West, Napa and Sonoma. This year the tables were turned; Napa, the region with the second most gold or double gold came away with 26. Of course, those of us who live in the Sierra Foothill Appellation have known how great our wines are all along.

For those of you who do not know, the Sierra Foothill Appellation is comprised of El Dorado, Amador, Calaveras, Nevada, Placer, Yuba, Tuolumne and Mariposa, counties. It is one of the largest AVA’s (American Viticulture Area) in California It encompasses over 2,600,000 acres and is home to over 200 wineries.

So what exactly is an appellation? An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication used to identify where the grapes for wine were grown. To qualify as an AVA it must be demonstrated that the wines produced from that region possess similar characteristics. That is, the grapes/wines are influenced by soil, climate, landscape, etc. (also known as terroir) and produce a style of wine that cannot exactly be duplicated elsewhere. Wines produced with an AVA designation must contain a minimum of 85% of the grapes used in making the wine from that AVA.

Special congratulations to all of the Sierra Foothill wineries for a job well done. It is not possible to list all of the wineries that medaled in this year’s wine competition but here are a few that were recognized with Double Gold, Gold or Best of… awards; Best of Region awards went to Windwalker (Double Gold-Shady Lady Primitivo) and Obscurity Cellars (Double Gold- Alicante Boushcet Rose); Gold and/or Double Gold went to: Amador Foothill Winery, Black Sheep Winery, Borjon Winery, Chatom Vineyards, Convergence Vineyards, Dillian Wines, Driven Cellars, Drytown Cellars, Goldhill Vineyard, Jeff Runquist Wines, Milliare, Renwood Winery, Sobon Estates, Twisted Oak Winery, Villa Toscano Winery, and Wilderotter Winery. I am sure I missed a few, so check at:
www.bigfun.org/competitions-awards. Again, congratulations to everyone!

Finally, we are going through verasion in the vine-yard. At least that’s true for some of us in the lower elevations. At Frog’s Tooth we are beginning to see color in our Grenache and Petite Sirah. The Sauvigon Blanc and Viognier are swelling and softening up. We may be harvesting Sauvignon Blanc in another 3-4 weeks. Then let the fun begin…it will be non-stop for the next 2 months or maybe more?

Reports from other vineyards indicate that the crop loads for some varietals may be lower than expected due to the late season hail in the upper elevation vineyards. Others have seen a slight decrease in crop from last year but overall, quality looks good. Harvest seems to be running about two weeks be-hind normal. We’re all keeping our fingers crossed that Nature doesn’t play anymore tricks on us until harvest is over. That means no foul weather or fowls of a feather, please. Many wineries are finishing up their bottling of 2009 vintage wines. Tanks are being emptied; equipment is being cleaned and serviced in preparation for this year’s crush.

Don’t be surprised if you start getting solicited to help in the vineyard or winery. Remember, it’s fun and not everyone gets to do it…and I have a picket fence to whitewash, too. As a reminder, September is Wine Month, so get out there and drink some wine. Lots and lots of wine; we need the revenue. Plus, it’s good for you.
Until next time, Gary and Sue
Drop us a line and let us know what’s on your mind… fromthevine@pacbell.net or PO Box 897, Sutter Creek, CA 95685

"Sorrow can be alleviated by good sleep, a bath and a glass of good wine."
St. Thomas Aquinas

Back to Top


HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER VACATION…An Alaskan cruise, no; a trip to Mexico, no; a trip to Europe for a leisurely wine cruise or tour; not even close…maybe you’re thinking a day trip or two to the lake or mountains for some much deserved R&R; uh, no. As luck would have it, my summer vacation has, so far, been spent working in the vineyard. I know, some would say what a GREAT way to spend the summer.

Yes, some WOULD say that! However, as much as I like working in the vineyard it would be nice to get some time away to relax and do nothing. But as Sue constantly reminds me, "That’s farming". (Ironically, one of the things that attracted me to Gary back when we were barely out of diapers was that he had steady employment. The other thing, besides the Ford Mustang, of course, was that he wasn’t a farmer!) So what have I been doing in the vineyard? I’m doing many of the same things that a lot of you are doing or should be doing (Yes, daddy dearest). Earlier in the year we dealt with pruning and shoot selection. Of course, we had an "unseasonable" rain, although I’m not sure we can call it unseasonable anymore since it’s happened for the last couple of years.

But, because of the rain, another pass through the vineyard with sulfur spray was dictated. Along with the sulfur sprays, now is the time to treat the vines for mites, whitefly and other "sucking" pests. (Do the IRS and State Board of Equalization fit into that category? OOPS, are they listening?) I may have mentioned in previous articles that our vineyard is located in the Salt Spring Valley just outside of Copperopolis. I mention this because we generally get a breeze that develops around 10:00 am every day. To keep drift to a minimum, we start spraying at daylight and stop around 10pm. It usually takes a couple of days to complete the spraying.

My routine is to get up at 4 am, get to the vineyard 5 am, don my hooded spray suit, rubber boots, respirator, goggles, and rubber gloves, mix the chemicals in the 50 gallon Pak-Blast sprayer and fly through the vineyard at a blazing 1.5 mph. This year, of course, we had the rain and then 100+ temperatures. Oh, did I mention the spray outfit adds about 10 degrees to the outside temperature? So, when it got up to 100 degrees, it was 110 degrees in the spray suit. As the temperature in the suit rises, you realize that you are sitting in a sauna with sweat filling up your boots and fogging your goggles. Nothing but fun! (Complain, complain. Do you know how much tourists in Sweden pay to hunker down on wooden benches bristling with ill placed slivers while huddling congenially around steaming rocks? Then they clamor out the door and roll around in the snow like giddy penguins. Cowboy-up there, pardner!).

We have experienced a booming grasshopper population again this year and we are treating with NoLo bait. This is interesting bait. (Only a farmer would say that.) It is made from flaky wheat bran sprayed with protozoan. The protozoa affect the grasshopper’s digestive system so they don’t eat and become lethargic. Eventually, the grasshoppers will die. The protozoa, however, live on and because grasshoppers are cannibalistic, the others feed on the dead ones and become infected too. (Creepy: Stephen King, are you listening?)

Now we are tucking, suckering and moving wires as the vines have started their spurt of rapid shoot growth. (Perhaps we should consider that technique for our grandson, Gio, who is 13 years old now and stands about 5 feet, 9 inches.) Berry set has occurred in our area. We want to get the berries acclimated to the sunshine so we will be doing some leaf pulling around the clusters. We are also experimenting with a different canopy management style known as "ballerina". We are on a VSP (vertical shoot position) trellis. Normally this trellising style keeps most of the vine growth in a vertical position inside the wires.

The ballerina style allows for some shoot growth to hang outside of the wires and into the vineyard rows to provide for some additional shade. (Sounds like but farmers can’t say, "Tutu".) Our vineyard is going to be part of the annual Calaveras Winegrape Alliance Vineyard tour later this month, so a final mowing and some under-the-vine weed eating is in order. Lest I forget, we continue to monitor the vineyard for irrigation repairs and it’s now time for a post bloom fertigation application. A month or so from now, we should begin harvesting our Sauvignon Blanc grapes. And then the fun really begins!
Until next time, Gary and Sue

Send us your comments, favorite recipes and stories to fromthevine@pacbell.net or write to us c/o Gold Country Times, PO Box 897, Sutter Creek, CA 95685.

"Wine makes daily living easier, less hurried, with fewer tensions and more tolerance."
-- Benjamin Franklin

Back to Top


Rose Expose June 2011

Greetings to one and all from summer central. The thermometer topped out at 104 today in the vineyard and the grapes are ecstatic. Irrigation is a must now to keep the vines stretching skyward and the fruit sucking up moisture like dromedaries in the Sahara.

It’s time to finally tuck away the winter togs and strut around in our tank tops and shorts. However, don’t forget the sun block or you will find yourself pinking up from too much sun exposure. (After the interminable winter and a peek-a-boo spring that teased us unmercifully with its on-again, off-again flirtations can one really imagine too much sun?) Yes, one can. Just ask those mothers chasing flush faced toddlers and wives dogging the heels of lackadaisical husbands. Speaking of pinking up, let’s get down and dirty and dish up what we here snidely call the "Rose Expose". What is the real story behind those naughty "blushing" pink wines? What were those berries doing out there behind the winery that compromised their pristine white clarity? Or more pertinent what were those vintners doing to their grape juices?

Like so many seemingly easy questions, we need to step back in time for the complete answer. (Oh, no, here he goes again on a side trip that might drag us off into deepest outer space. Black hole, here we come.) In the late 1970’s once popular Portuguese pink wines like Mateus and Lancers (groovy bottles) were going out of fashion. Rose, it seemed, semisweet though it might have been was leaving a sour taste in wine purchaser’s mouths. Red wines made from Zinfandel were also losing their appeal. (Oh, darling, that wine is just so, so pedestrian, don’t you think?) Fortunately for Zinfandel lovers, not to mention nervous Zinfandel grape growers who were staring at hundreds of acres of producing vines, as well as the loyalists who still wanted to think pink, Sutter Home winery created a market for rose Zinfandel.

For some reason the wine-makers called it "white". Bacchus only knows why. (Could have been an error during the labeling process.) So, how did the winemakers create that softer pink tint that is characteristic of a rose? Good question? The way rose is produced is very similar to the method for making red wine. As you recall from earlier articles red wine becomes red because the juice ferments while staying in contact with the red grape skins. The juice draws the color from the skins. Yeast is added and the grapes are stirred or pumped around the tank during fermentation to encourage redness of color, flavor, and tannin. To create a rose, the winemaker will leave the juice in contact with the skins for only 12 to 24 hours. The color that develops is lighter, pinker, and daintier. (I have been waiting for months to wordsmith in that ladylike delicacy: daintier. Big, tough guys would be laughed out of the vineyard for employing such a sissy adjective.)

Another difference between the production of rose and red wines happens later in the process. Once fermentation has been completed, the red wine juice is drawn off. This is known as free-run juice or free-run wine. The winemaker who wants more tannin or color in the red wine can press the leftovers and combine this "press wine" with the other liquid. For a rose wine the maker would not normally blend this "press wine" back into the juice that was first drawn off. Instead the winemaker can either decide to allow it to ferment only a little longer before stopping the process and bottling the wine as a semisweet pink wine or perhaps decide to allow the fermentation to complete as though it were to become a dry white wine.

Whatever the decision, the rose is unlikely to go into a new oak barrel. (No, no, don’t throw my precious baby into anything that astringent or harsh! Remember, she is too delicate for that.) Roses are generally bottled within a few months of the harvest. It is generally better to drink rose's as soon as they are bought because the majority of roses do not improve noticeably with age. Don’t wait. Why not pair a dry rose for your first summer cook-out with charbroiled swordfish and a fresh green salad topped with a simple citrus dressing. The meaty swordfish needs a bit of red fruit in a wine to bring out the flavor. Until next time, Gary and Sue

Drop us a line and let us know what’s on your mind… fromthevine@pacbell.net or PO Box 897, Sutter Creek, CA 95685

"Compromises are for relationships, not wine." - Sir Robert Scott Caywood

Back to Top


Sweet Wines   May 2011

Mother Nature is belting out a riotous vineyard two step now: mow me; spray me; mow me; spray me. The winemaker, Gary, and the winemaker’s pup, Rascal, are holding hands and paws and dancing between rows of Grenache and Viognier. Both man and dog swear on a stack of Wine Spectator magazines that they are working, but we know better, don’t we? I occasionally hear the roar of the Kubota tractor or the bark of the four-legged, many-fanged squirrel bane. However, the ominous periods of quiet guaranties that beer is being guzzled and ears are being scratched.

Hopefully, the taller and, theoretically, more mature of the pair is imbibing while the shorter one looks on with wistful, hero worshipping eyes and dreams of the day when he can metamorphosis into his own real boy skin with be-fingered paws capable of clutching a bottle between his very own opposable thumb and forefinger.

While they are distracted, let’s sneak in a few comments about my favorite and the taller one’s least favorite subject: sweet wines. The wine industry and the aforementioned tall tractor driver have generally pushed sweet wines to the back of the burner to make more room for dry and ultra-dry wines. But, historically, people have enjoyed drinking sweet wines with their meals. In addition, late harvest sweet wines pair well with popular Pan-Asian and California cuisine. So, why bridle your sweet tooth and limit your sweet wine pairing to cheeses and desserts only?

Take the bit into your mouth and run a little wild. You will discover that sweet wines can also complement meats, sea foods, and soups. The chef only needs to ensure the sauce being served is not sweeter than the wine. (Or in Gary and Rascal’s case, the corn dog dip and the kibble juices should not be sweeter than the accompanying wine.) So, you may wonder, just what is a late harvest wine?

Glad you asked! Here in the higher elevations of the foothills harvest generally happens in September. However, our vineyard, Frog’s Tooth in Salt Springs Valley, ranges from only 900 to 1200 feet so we can start harvest earlier on in the later weeks of August. A late harvest wine grape can be picked three, four, or even eight weeks later. Timing is critical. The grape grower wants the sugars in the fruit to be as high as possible (Can you say 35 brix?) while still being balanced by good numbers in acid and ph. (Not to mention the unpredictability of fall weather patterns and the unenviable possibility of harvesting during thunder and lightning or falling snowflakes.)

Delayed harvesting with the need for more vigilant monitoring of the fruit and additional labor costs for the returning labor crews translate into higher production costs so don’t be unduly surprised when the price for a sweet wine is higher than the typical price for a dry wine. Another technique for creating sweet wine involves the manipulation of Botrytis cinera a.k.a. the Noble Rot. (Dare I say this while dedicated grape growers everywhere strap jet sprayers to their backs-actually to their tractors but that is a mundane visual-and march up and down their grape rows 24 hours a day fighting fungi?) Botrytis spores are present in vineyards all over the world but the main condition to make them sprout is high humidity.

Most growers will drag out the spraying rigs, especially after rain, and apply chemicals to their grape buds to prevent the growth of unwanted mildew and fungus and rot (whether noble or as common as a stable boy). The unbridled spores penetrate the grape skin without breaking it and evaporate the water out of the grape. The grape clusters shrivel and are left without nearly 60 percent of the juice they started with but have greater concentrations of sugar and glycerin per ounce. Savvy fungi wranglers/vintners celebrate this lack of juice. Grape growers howl in agony because less juice equals lower weight equals less money in their pockets because, remember, they are being paid for their grapes by the tonnage they bring to market.

Oops, just when we are getting to the finger licking, super sticky section of the sweet wine story, the winemaker and the spigot licker are returning. Let’s hit the SAVE button and corral this edition before our own glucose levels shoot into the danger zone.
Until next time, Gary and Sue

Back to Top


Spring Chores   April 2011

In the spring every young man’s fancy turns to thoughts of…pre-emergent spraying, mowing, shoot thinning, pruning, and bud break. (I agree with you, readers, those thoughts should have turned to love, but the thoughts of farmers, like those of Nascar drivers, tend to spin around a central core of horsepower, torque, and gear ratios) Valley grape growers already have grape shoots of four to five inches while here in the foothills most grape varieties are just showing the first signs of bud break. (Crikies, man, what do you expect? Last week it was snowing here in Murphys!)

Good news for local growers-we finally started seeing the sun. The bad news for local growers is that winter stomped back in with hail storms and dropping temperatures. So, we say our prayers, get our sulphur ready (using air blast sprayers-thinking Nascar still?), and busying ourselves with other chores such as topping, blending, and preparing to bottle those wines that are ready to graduate from the barrel.

You may be wondering what topping is. To learn about that you need to know that once wine is put into barrels for aging, not all the wine stays there. Some of it evaporates through the sides of the barrels. This wispy runaway wine is commonly referred to as "the angel’s share". (Now that is lovely and almost romantic.) During much of the wine-making process, air is the enemy. A winemaker wants to keep his or her barrels full so that little or no air comes in contact with the wine living inside. So, periodically, the winemaker will pull the bung, the oversize plug on the top of the barrel, (remember, though, the barrels are lying on their sides, so that would be the top of whatever side is pointing toward the sky) Well, aren’t you observant. Anyway, the bung is pulled and more wine is added to fill the barrel to the top again.

At various times during the winemaking process, nitrogen or argon may be used by the winemaker to protect the wine. Because these gases are heavier than air, they can be pumped into the wine vessel (barrel, stainless steel tank, or other container) to form a protective seal between the wine and the air. (No, Dorothy, now climb off that barrel, put down that helium tank, and slip your ruby red slippers back on. Helium is only good for dirigibles and testosterone overloaded Munchkins.)

A second fun chore for this time of the year is blending. As the name implies this technique involves combining two or more wines into a combination that pleases the wine-maker and all the friends who accepted their invitations to the blending party. (King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table thought they were living large while gathered together in a smoke filled castle planning manly pre four stroke engine war campaigns. Their mead might have been rousing but those epidermis grabbing chain-mail suits probably raised more merry old rashes than goblets raised by knights.) So, why blend wines?

Like mad scientists, winemakers are always looking for ways to "make it better". Blending grapes with grapes that have different characteristics, perhaps from different vineyard sites or different clones or varietals gives the winemaker tools to create a wine that is "greater than the sum of its parts". As an example, we make a Meritage. It is a blend of different Bordeaux varietals. Varietals, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Verdot, Malbec and Merlot in our blend contribute different color, aroma and flavor components that when melded together create a wine that is more interesting and complex than the "sum of its parts". Bottling is yet another activity that is taking place in many wineries this time of year. As many of you may know, this is not especially one of my favorite things to do.

It accounts for long days of standing and lifting with few breaks. I do enjoy the camaraderie but let’s face it; I would rather be out in the vineyard or "creating" in the winery. It’s a necessary part of the process and it does bring a feeling of satisfaction when the wine is finally bottled and labeled, ready for the tasting room and our customers.
Until next time, Gary and Sue

Drop us a line and let us know what’s on your mind: fromthevine@pacbell.net or PO Box 897, Sutter Creek, CA 95685

Wine is constant proof that God loves us and loves to see us happy. - Benjamin Franklin


Work in the Vineyard  March 2011

Rain, Snow, Power outages… ENOUGH ALREADY! We don’t know about the rest of you but we’re ready for winter to get the "heck" out of Dodge… There’s work to be done in the vineyard and this weather is keeping me from my appointed tasks. (Yes, and it’s keeping him home and in my hair!) I hope you all have had an opportunity to get your under-the-vine weeding programs done. Whether you use sprays or mechanical weed control, it’s a good thing to get them done before spring really sets in and the grasses take off.

My initial Roundup and pre-emergent sprays were done a few weeks ago but this weather is hampering my mowing. Many vineyards are in the midst of pruning and, although rain doesn’t prevent the crews from working in the vineyards, it certainly makes for a miserable day. (Believe me, I know. I’ve had to be out there with you on many a rainy day and to put it bluntly, IT SUCKS!) You have such a way with words. Getting the vineyard floor weeded, mowed and generally spruced up is not only esthetically pleasing but helps reduce problems in the vineyard later in the year. Removing or shredding the left over prunings reduces the chances of pests that over winter on the canes.

Shredding the prunings has an added benefit since they then become compost that works its way back into the soil. If one is not shredding, then it’s a good idea to drag a springtooth through the vineyard and remove the prunings for later disposal. Bud break in the foothills is just around the corner. There is a growing concern about the possibility or more likely probability that there will be a frost during the onset of bud break. Frost can have a devastating effect on young buds and shoots as we experienced a couple of years ago when many vineyards lost 50% or more of their crops due to an extended frost.

We’ve talked about some various methods of frost control before, like wind machines, smudge pots and overhead sprinklers. These controls can mitigate the damage caused from an extended frost but they can also be expensive; an expense that most small vine-yards cannot afford. So, like us and many others we throw the dice and take our chances that damage from a frost will be minimal. If you have a vineyard you may have been or may soon be contacted by your county agriculture department regarding the placement of bug traps.

As you know, this is a key line of defense in our ongoing battle against several devastating insects such as the Glassy-wing Sharpshooter and the European Grapevine Moth. Early detection is paramount, so please cooperate with them and allow them access to your vine-yard to set and monitor traps. It benefits us all.

Out in the winery we continue to do barrel work and bottling. Not necessarily the fun stuff for me. (Oh, face it; you love to be out in the winery no matter what you’re doing). I guess that’s true but I have to keep the image up that this is hard work and not just more time to taste wine and drink beer. But, we do in fact, do work. Barrels need to be inspected and topped. Plus there are always surprises when you haven’t been there for a few days. It seems a rabbit got into the winery while I was up there the last time and was trapped in there for several days. What a mess! Rabbit pellets everywhere.

It had jumped up on the lab table and knocked off some of the equipment, pulled down the curtain over the window, knocked the stereo off the window ledge, knocked off several wine glasses onto the floor-glass everywhere. It wasn’t fun cleaning up and having to sanitize everything again. It’s a good thing I don’t eat rabbit. Until next time, Gary and Sue

Drop us a line and let us know what’s on your mind, fromthevine@pacbell.net or PO Box 897, Sutter Creek, CA 95685.

"Sorrow can be alleviated by good sleep, a bath and a glass of good wine."
St. Thomas Aquinas

Back to Top


Sensory Response to Wine  January 2011

Wake up, sleepyheads! Anyone who has ever shambled through a Northern California winter without the luxury of island hopping in the South Pacific knows the monotony of four interminable months of gun metal gray skies or cotton batting fog inspired claustrophobia. No wonder we overeat at Thanksgiving: the apparent gluttony is a precursor to impending forced hibernation.

So, what is the remedy? You open hearth and home to friends and family and bring out several bottles of that cabernet sauvignon you squirreled away last fall. With a hearty (some might say goofy) grin on your face you await the expected accolades, praise, and yahoos. But what happens? Someone, most likely a woman (you will find out why later) grimaces and complains that the wine is too harsh or too bitter.

Now, before you get yourself in a pickle by proclaiming some palates (meaning yours, of course) are more developed than others, consider this: according to Liz Thach, Ph.D, wine business and management professor at Sonoma State University and Tim Hanni, CEO of the Napa Seasoning Company and a founding partner of Wine Quest LLC, studies have shown that differences in sensory response to wine can be roughly divided into two categories of physical and associative diversity.

The first, physical diversity, includes the number of taste buds on a person’s tongue, his or her salivary rate flow, the amount of protein in the person’s saliva, the individual’s response to hot or cold, and, of course, whether or not your guest has a raging head cold, stayed out too late the previous evening and is now semi-comatose from sleep deprivation, or perhaps just received a pink slip from the office manager and is stressing over the upcoming lease payment on the new Escalade that Santa Claus delivered but did not include in his own personal budget.

Associative diversity has to do with a person’s background and wine experiences. For example, if one of your guests remembers the dismal summer spent mowing lawns as a youngster to raise enough collateral for a Schwinn bicycle that was later stolen by a less enterprising but light fingered thief, the grassy aroma of sauvignon blancs could generate a negative response. Ditto the guest who is forced to stock up on antihistamines once the snow melts and the tips of budding greenery poke up from the thawing earth. (Achoo, and God bless you!)

As for wine experiences, consider the thoroughly enjoyable Tempranillo that one of your guests raved about when shared with the loving fiancé but that later tasted flat and unappetizing as the poor sod sipped while opening the letter postmarked in Paris that included a snapshot of the Eiffel Tower, the returned engagement ring, and the heartbreaker’s new email address: mariekisskissclaudeforever@inyourface.com . Perhaps an obvious exaggeration and hyperbole but you get the picture.

So what do we learn from all this (Something less stressful, I hope! My gewürztraminer is suddenly acquiring bitter overtones.) People are different. (Duh!) Some people are hypersensitive tasters. These folks have more taste buds and react at first to a big tannin wine with disgust. More taste buds-more intensity-yuck! About 25% of the population falls into this category and most of them are women.

The tolerant tasters have fewer taste buds and prefer denser, more concentrated wines higher in tannins and acid. This 25% of the population is more likely to enjoy big cabernets and red Bordeaux wines over lighter, more delicate offerings. Most of these folks are men.
The last group, about 50% of the population (Great math there, my man), are sensitive tasters who are fortunate to have been born with the capability to enjoy both light, delicate and sweet wines while easily moving on to and savoring red wines of higher intensity. (Super, let’s bring magnifying glasses to our next party and count taste buds on everyone’s tongues. Then for future gatherings we will be able to invite only abundant budders to white wine parties and skimpy budders to red wine parties. We might also consider ear tagging each person according to taste bud type, but some might label that just a tad extreme!)

What does all this mean? (Keep it simple, man, the philosophy column is on another page.) Diversity is Mother’s Golden Rule. (It’s also a vaccination against boredom and an antidote for malaise.) Keep Mother Nature happy; live in balance with the cosmos; don’t mock your fellow wine lovers because he or she may have been born with less or more taste buds than you; get on the rainbow colored bus of God’s living creatures and, lastly, always bring two bottles of wine to every party: one red and one white

Until next time, Gary and Sue
Drop us a line and let us know what’s on your mind. fromthevine@pacbell.net or PO Box 897, Sutter Creek, CA 95685

“What is better than to sit at the end of the day and drink wine with friends, or substitutes for friends!” - James Joyce


Back to Top




http://www.frogstooth.com


The Gold Country Times

P.O. Box 897
Sutter Creek, CA 95685
(209) 267-9886
editor@goldcountrytimes.com

The Gold Country Times supports the military mission of our country, and our troops
that risk their lives every day in foreign lands all over the world.




 

Back to Top

About Us | Community Calendar  | Contact Us | Editor's Desk | Gold Country Living | Gold Country Links



Amador Flower Farm


Murder in the Gold Country

Support the fight
against Breast
Cancer

 


Ione Pharmacy


Clear Water


Vanessa Shaw


The Shack Restaurant


Pizza Factory


Lockeford Jewelry
and Loan


Sew Into You


Ronnie McBrayer


Joe's Bar & Grill

 

 

© 2003 Gold Country Times. All Rights Reserved