It has been a horrible week here in wine country with cold, wet, miserable weather. Thankfully I woke up today to find a clear blue sky and bright sunshine. Now that’s more like it!
The grape harvest is full on! Our “Grape Crusader” Chris Andrewes and I were chuckling on how much whining grape growers seem to do. You bump into them mumbling about how long the harvest has been and how much longer they have to go etc. Well as fruit farmers, Chris and I think there is a whole lot of whining going on. For Chris, it’s been “ground hog” day since about June 6 when his harvest started in earnest with sweet cherries. He’s been at this for months and manages to keep a smile on his face.
It’s been a fabulous summer so the quality of the fruit hanging in the vineyards is fantastic. Our Pinot Noir is harvested and doing its thing bubbling away. Yesterday our Chardonnay was picked and today we picked all our Riesling. Next week we’ll harvest our Cabernet Franc and with that the 2010 season will be put to bed for another year.
Fresh picked for Riesling Jelly!
I rushed out this morning with my jelly pans to harvest some Riesling grapes for my own kitchen. I’m going to make some Riesling jelly to sell along side “the good wine” Riesling at the HandMade Market in November. I have already made some Gewürztraminer jelly (a lovely pinkish colour) and hope to make some Cabernet Franc jelly as well. Unfortunately, I was too slow off the mark and missed my chance to get some Chardonnay grapes. I think it will be fun for people to have a number of different jellies to sample. It will be interesting to see if the varietal characteristics are as evident in the jellies as they are in the wine. If nothing else the jellies will be a happy addition to our “retail therapist” Amanda’s “Just Add Cheese” gift packs.
It’s going to be a busy weekend but there will be no whining from this corner. With a forecast for sunny skies and mild temperatures, what more could we ask for?
The Good Earth 