2015 vintage

[REDRUM]

Harvest time here in SA and the weather is beeeeeeyoudiful (sorry to all you North Americans still shivering through the depths of winter...

Tomorrow I'm picking Grenache at my in-laws' place ... and Friday heading to McLaren Vale to take a row of Shiraz that is inaccessible for machine harvesters.
Saturday, picking as a volunteer at a commercial winery - the winemaker puts on a huge lunch and cracks open plenty of wine so it should be a great day out!

My father-in-law is co-fermenting a big vat of Grenache/Shiraz, I'm going to take 25L of each and do my own thing with it. Planning to ferment the two varietals in separate fermenters using a partial carbonic maceration - about 1/3 whole bunches and 2/3 crushed must. From this I want to make two straight varietals, and a blend.

I'm really unsure how this will work out vs a conventional (all must) ferment but keen to give it a crack regardless!

 

[Bergmann]

Sounds like a fun and interesting way to spend a few days

 

[jsiddall]

Harvest time here in SA and the weather is beeeeeeyoudiful (sorry to all you North Americans still shivering through the depths of winter...

Yeah, it was -35 C here yesterday with the windchill

 

[ColemanM]

You're living the dream!!!

 

[Arne]

Just remember about 6 months from now, we get the nice weather and you have to put up with winter.Can hardly wait. LOL, Arne.

 

[REDRUM]

That's true, feel free to rub it in then...!

Just got back from shiraz pick & crush, the grapes look good - definitely ripe & sweet! came in around 30 Brix / 17 Baume (the grenache yesterday was 22 / 12).

 

[JohnT]

REDRUM,

By any chance could you post some pictures??

30 Brix?? That seems rather high. Did you measure your TA? I would be concerned that it is rather low.

 

[syncnite]

Thanks for posting. I'm glad someone here is reveling in harvest-time fun. It's fun to imagine.

Here in California, unfortunately, commercial wineries have to be careful now about using volunteer labor, for risk of being slapped with fines. I've also volunteered at small winery harvests, paid with a lunch and wine.

 

[REDRUM]

Yeah I can see why volunteer harvesting would be frowned upon by the authorities ... but a big lunch, drinks flowing, and going home with a few bottles of good wine makes for a good day...
It was VERY hot work though!

 

[REDRUM]

REDRUM,

By any chance could you post some pictures??

Here are some pics. They're all from the first day picking grenache, except the one of the fermentation buckets in my bathroom, which I took just then... bubbling away nicely!

30 Brix?? That seems rather high. Did you measure your TA? I would be concerned that it is rather low.

Yeah it does seem pretty high (although shiraz usually is). I know the surrounding blocks were harvested commercially at the same time so fairly sure we didn't leave it too long. Haven't done a TA test so have no idea what that's looking like...