2011 Fresh Grapes From California via FVW
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I have a couple of LR's on order as a stand by for this new barrel. Got to keep it full and as you know the first year can be tough!
rrawhide
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Hi Mike
Getting back into it - after a little recess. All my vines are pruned and canes are heeled-in down in the field. Need to replace about 25. 2 cabs; 15 syrah and 8 teraldego. Have ground squirrel and gopher problems but gonna get 'em.
Went through the whole thread again and wow what a workout. George needs to invest in a crusher/destemmer must pump so youse guys can crush destemm and pump into your white brutes IN the SUV. Then you only have to lift when you get home. SAVES THE BACK. Also, we raised our crusher destemmer up higher (added blocks under legs) to crush right into the 20-50 gallon barrels. However, we do have a tractor/loader to lift and move from there.
I also noticed that the crush (must) looked rather dry - were the rollers close enough to break the berries and start the juice flow? We get lots and lots of juice when we crush.
Anyway, that's over and now the waiting and tasting and tasting and tasting begins. Hope that they all work out the way that you want them too.
Good talking to you and best of luck. Retirement coming?
Later
rrawhide
Getting back into it - after a little recess. All my vines are pruned and canes are heeled-in down in the field. Need to replace about 25. 2 cabs; 15 syrah and 8 teraldego. Have ground squirrel and gopher problems but gonna get 'em.
Went through the whole thread again and wow what a workout. George needs to invest in a crusher/destemmer must pump so youse guys can crush destemm and pump into your white brutes IN the SUV. Then you only have to lift when you get home. SAVES THE BACK. Also, we raised our crusher destemmer up higher (added blocks under legs) to crush right into the 20-50 gallon barrels. However, we do have a tractor/loader to lift and move from there.
I also noticed that the crush (must) looked rather dry - were the rollers close enough to break the berries and start the juice flow? We get lots and lots of juice when we crush.
Anyway, that's over and now the waiting and tasting and tasting and tasting begins. Hope that they all work out the way that you want them too.
Good talking to you and best of luck. Retirement coming?
Later
rrawhide
Bartman
Senior Member
George's crusher/destemmer was in great shape, and operated by someone who knew what they were doing. I don't think he anticipated having anyone with 700 lbs of grapes crushed/de-stemmed into brutes to be loaded into a truck, at the store; he expected only the local small-timers like me (6 lugs total) to need it. The same with the press the next week. In fact, I don't think George sells primary containers like the Brutes.
Edit: My mistake, I see George *does* sell 10 and 20 gallon plastic fermenting buckets. I don't think I have ever seen them in his store; I suppose that's because they don't look as sexy as the stainless steel tanks.
Edit: My mistake, I see George *does* sell 10 and 20 gallon plastic fermenting buckets. I don't think I have ever seen them in his store; I suppose that's because they don't look as sexy as the stainless steel tanks.
Hey Rick!
Not sure how I missed this post except that it was about the time SWMBO was admitted to the ER and ultimately into the hospital.......
She ended up getting 3 pints of blood and and an overnight stay. She had been having female problems for some time. They ended up doing a hysterectomy on her a few weeks later. They gave her 2 more pints after the surgery so 5 pints total in a month! She is feeling much better now and problems are all solved.
So back to the updates on this stuff. Its now 6 months old and I am in the process of rotating the wines into and out of the 3 barrels I have.
This stuff is turning out FANTASTIC! Amazing varietal character and bouquet for such a young bunch of wines. The stuff that has come out of the barrel and back to glass and thus have been oaked are stunning.
I tell you what, I may be going back to Texas and FVW this Fall and skipping a trip down South for NM fruit. This stuff is just in a whole different league compared to the fruit grown in Deming. Its good, but NO comparison to this IMHO. Will keep posting updates on these until they are bottled.
Not sure how I missed this post except that it was about the time SWMBO was admitted to the ER and ultimately into the hospital.......
She ended up getting 3 pints of blood and and an overnight stay. She had been having female problems for some time. They ended up doing a hysterectomy on her a few weeks later. They gave her 2 more pints after the surgery so 5 pints total in a month! She is feeling much better now and problems are all solved.
So back to the updates on this stuff. Its now 6 months old and I am in the process of rotating the wines into and out of the 3 barrels I have.
This stuff is turning out FANTASTIC! Amazing varietal character and bouquet for such a young bunch of wines. The stuff that has come out of the barrel and back to glass and thus have been oaked are stunning.
I tell you what, I may be going back to Texas and FVW this Fall and skipping a trip down South for NM fruit. This stuff is just in a whole different league compared to the fruit grown in Deming. Its good, but NO comparison to this IMHO. Will keep posting updates on these until they are bottled.
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Worth the trip Bob! That was a bad year as well harvest wise if you recall. It was a cool Summer, and late rains delayed the harvest making an even tough job more difficult. One thing I will do differently is I won't drive up from San Antonio until truck is at FVW next time. Lesson learned there!
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