# The 2016 Season is official



## NorCal (Mar 29, 2016)

I signed a contract for a ton of Syrah and a ton of Grenache with a local vineyard today. Me and my winemaking partner @4Score are saving 60 gallons (collectively) of Mourvedre that we made this year, so we have all the makings of the perfect GSM blend in 2017. I would still like to do a Chardonnay this year, but it seems difficult to find those grapes.


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## Busabill (Mar 29, 2016)

Man that's a lot of grapes. Jealous here!! Good luck!!


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## ibglowin (Mar 29, 2016)

No Cab!


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## sour_grapes (Mar 29, 2016)

He's a Rhone Ranger (evidently)! 

To that end, would you be interested to do a Viognier instead of the Chard? Then you could also make a Northern Rhone blend (90% Syrah, 10% Viognier). You'd have coverage all the way up and down the Valley!


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## NorCal (Mar 29, 2016)

In our area (Sierra Foothills AVA), the Rhone varietals seem to do well. Sour, we may need to go the Viognier route, cause I think I can get those grapes and Chard is proving illusive.

It's funny you mention Cab. It is already in @4Score and my plans for 2017. We attempted to replicated a recent 100 point Parker wine by making their exact blend. We took 8 bottles of Cab Franc we made, 1/2 bottle of Petite Verdot I made, 3 bottles of commercial Merlot and 1 bottle of commercial cab and blended it in a carboy. Gave it 30ppm SO2 and re bottled it. 

It actually tastes pretty darn good. The merlot takes a lot of the Franc-i-ness out of the cab franc and the blend tasted like a nice, fully body, smooth Cabernet. So, our plan 2017 plan involves local Cab Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot and if we can find it, some Cabernet.


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## Boatboy24 (Mar 29, 2016)

I don't know why you guys go through all the trouble of making wine when you produce so little. 

</sarcasm>


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## bkisel (Mar 29, 2016)

NorCal said:


> I signed a contract for a ton of Syrah and a ton of Grenache with a local vineyard today. Me and my winemaking partner @4Score are saving 60 gallons (collectively) of Mourvedre that we made this year, so we have all the makings of the perfect GSM blend in 2017. I would still like to do a Chardonnay this year, but it seems difficult to find those grapes.



Do you mean a literal ton of each?  If so... WOW!


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## NorCal (Mar 29, 2016)

Yes, as in 2000lbs each varietal. Here is one of the two bins of Barbera from 2015


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## Busabill (Mar 30, 2016)

Norcal, did you make the Barbara straight or blend it?? Barbera is on my list of wants for this season!


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## JohnT (Mar 30, 2016)

Very nice Norcal! 

How many "workers" do you plan on having to process all of that??


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## bkisel (Mar 30, 2016)

It amazes me on how many different levels this wine making hobby/endeavor can be enjoyed. I imagine there are some that have started as kit and fruit wine makers and then progressed all the way up to having their own vineyard.


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## ibglowin (Mar 30, 2016)

Ken,

Have you said where your going to store all this once its in bottles? IIRC you have very limited space at the house! 



NorCal said:


> Yes, as in 2000lbs each varietal. Here is one of the two bins of Barbera from 2015


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## NorCal (Mar 30, 2016)

JohnT said:


> Very nice Norcal!
> 
> How many "workers" do you plan on having to process all of that??



I built an inspection chute that goes between the bin and the crusher. Last year we did three crushes of one ton each time. We had 4 or 5 people at each crush and knocked it out in 5 hours or so. It's nice to have sons and son in laws that are into wine


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## NorCal (Mar 30, 2016)

Busabill said:


> Norcal, did you make the Barbara straight or blend it?? Barbera is on my list of wants for this season!



Bill, right now it's straight Barbera. I did a 30 gallon barrel and 4Score did a 60 gallon barrel. I pulled it out of the 2nd year American oak 30 gallon barrel after 4 months because it was getting real oakey. It is now in a 30 gallon flex tank, quietly aging. I have Zin, Mourvedre and a little Petit Verdot as potential blending partners. We will have to see in July if anything will improve it.

I have to say, if I had to do it again, I would have pulled the Barbera after 1 month or not put it on oak at all. The topping barbera that I had in a carboy is outstanding. I mean you can drink a bottle right now (which I seem to do too often) and it is pretty darn good.


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## NorCal (Mar 30, 2016)

ibglowin said:


> Ken,
> 
> Have you said where your going to store all this once its in bottles? IIRC you have very limited space at the house!



IB, Of the 135 gallons remaining, 60 will be bottled and goes to Family members who are helping with this year's wine, 30 gallons will be saved for next year's GSM blend and the remaining 45 gallons will be bottled and stored in the Wine Box. I can get a 60, 30,30 barrels, 30 gallon flex and around 40 cases in there.


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## Floandgary (Mar 30, 2016)

NorCal said:


> IB, Of the 135 gallons remaining, 60 will be bottled and goes to Family members who are helping with this year's wine, 30 gallons will be saved for next year's GSM blend and the remaining 45 gallons will be bottled and stored in the Wine Box. I can get a 60, 30,30 barrels, 30 gallon flex and around 40 cases in there.



Would be so much easier to envision/understand if you simply attached a Tap or Spigot to the front of your storage structure. LOL


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## bkisel (Mar 30, 2016)

Don't know if you've noticed but there are some wine stains on your work table.


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## NorCal (Mar 30, 2016)

The table has since been replaced with my new bench


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## Busabill (Mar 30, 2016)

NorCal said:


> IB, Of the 135 gallons remaining, 60 will be bottled and goes to Family members who are helping with this year's wine, 30 gallons will be saved for next year's GSM blend and the remaining 45 gallons will be bottled and stored in the Wine Box. I can get a 60, 30,30 barrels, 30 gallon flex and around 40 cases in there.



Your storage box turned out awesome!! Well done!


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## Busabill (Mar 30, 2016)

NorCal said:


> Bill, right now it's straight Barbera. I did a 30 gallon barrel and 4Score did a 60 gallon barrel. I pulled it out of the 2nd year American oak 30 gallon barrel after 4 months because it was getting real oakey. It is now in a 30 gallon flex tank, quietly aging. I have Zin, Mourvedre and a little Petit Verdot as potential blending partners. We will have to see in July if anything will improve it.
> 
> I have to say, if I had to do it again, I would have pulled the Barbera after 1 month or not put it on oak at all. The topping barbera that I had in a carboy is outstanding. I mean you can drink a bottle right now (which I seem to do too often) and it is pretty darn good.



Got it! Did 4Score have a similar result with the oak? And yeah, you should be able to find a good blend to improve it.


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## 4score (Apr 1, 2016)

I have my Barbera in a new 60-gallon American oak barrel. Is it too much oak? The jury is still out. With Barbera, many purists will say to give it minimal oak so as not to mute the fruit. But I have had many local commercial Barbera wines that had plenty of oak and they were outstanding. The American Barbera is a bit "bolder" I think compared to the Italian wine. I think ours can stand up to the oak better. I'm definitely tasting and smelling the oak. My pH is a bit lower than NorCal's too. Mine tastes better than it smells right now......and when we blend his and mine together, we get something even better than each of our own by themselves! I'm going to give it until July/August - when I'll be bottling it. I have some blending options (12 gallons of ZIN, 10 gallons of non-oaked Barbera) that I can use if Norcal doesn't want to blend. Or, maybe at that time it won't need blending. We'll see.


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## 4score (Apr 1, 2016)

Our Barbera crush last season...

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmRyJwGQHto[/ame]


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