Winemaking Journal
2003
2003 marks the first year for production at the new winery. Limited harvest means limited production this year. First year production of Cabernet Sauvignon, Traminette, Chamborcin, and Concord were started in September.
Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon were harvested on 9-1-03. Starting Brix was 18, ta was .45 and a total of 15 gallons was obtained. Brix was raised to 24 and ta was raised to .6 with addition of sugar and acid blend. Primary lasted a week with twice daily punch downs of the cap. Wine was pressed and transferred to the secondary tank after one week.
Wine was racked into secondary storage tank on 9-8-03. The wine is progressing nicely, with ample fruit flavor. While the wine will not be a full Body big red wine because of the ripeness level of the grapes used, it should make a simple red wine of above average quality.
On 10-12-03 the wine was racked and additional sulfites added. Wine is clearing, and the flavor is still developing.
April 2004, wine is still bulk aging. Waiting for the time to bottle.
July 4, 2004 I finally put some wine in the bottle. Early taste test show a little "green" flavor but overall quality is good. The wine has nice body and should continue to gain complexity as it ages in the bottle.
Traminette
Traminette were harvested 9-1-03. Starting Brix was 20, ta of .5 and a total of 17 gallons were obtained. After destemming, grapes were pressed, and brix was adjsuted to 24, and ta was adjusted to .6%. Primary fermentation began after the addition of yeast and lasted one week before transfer to secondary storage tank.
On 9-8-03 the wine was moved to the secondary storage tank. The wine has a small amount of Gewurztraminer flavor, and seval is also a predominant flavor. The fruitiness of the white wine along with "bite" from the gewurztraminer should make an interesting finished product.
April, 2004, wine is still bulk aging. Waiting for time to bottle.
July 4, 2004 Wine is finally put in the bottle. Flavor is fair, more like a Seval than gewurztraminer. I hope it mellows with aging in the bottle.
Chamborcin
Chamborcin was picked on 9-6-03 and obtained from Brown's Valley Vineyard. Brix was 20, ta was .5% and was adjusted to 24 Brix and .6% ta. Grapes were destemmed and crushed, and allowed to ferment on the skins for one week. A total of seven gallons was obtained.
Wine was bottled in December 2003. Wine is bottle aging and continues to develope in flavor and body. Excellent wine!
The wine was transeferred to secondary storage for aging on 9-12-03. Wine has excellent body with quality fruit flavor. This will be an excellent vintage and probably the best of 2003.
After being bottled early, the wine has continued to progress.
Concord
Concord was picked over a period of August through September as the grapes were ripening. Grapes were picked, destemmed and frozen waiting on the uneven ripening to develope.
2004
First Harvest at new vineyard
The First Grapes picked this year was the Foch and the Leon Millott. The Leon Millott was definitely the superior grape, yields were double that of Foch and the grapes looked much more uniform and ripened better. The test wine was made using my new crusher/destemmer and I used my new bladder press. Grapes had good specs at harvest and I adjusted only slightly. The wine is still bulk aging.
Gewurztraminer
With the help of family members, we harvested and processed the Gewurztraminer at near optimum specs. The grapes were picked, crushed and pressed in one day. The wine is aging in bulk and has a nice start.
Traminette
This years Traminette was picked at near perfect specs. The grapes were processed and continues to bulk age.
Norton
Limited production this year made for a small batch of Norton. The grapes produced an ink red dark color and a very full body wine. I can't wait to see how this ages!
Cabernet Sauvignon
I had two different harvests for my Cabernet Sauvignon. The old vines at Pop's Farm produced less grapes than the previous year, but the quality was much better. The new harvest at the Pleasant Valley Road vineyard produced a decent harvest, but was limited by a late season production problem.