Washing Bottles
We’re getting ready to bottle our new Merlot and the pieces are coming together. The corks and foils are on the way. The labels are at the printer and look great. We picked up some bottles the other day from down south. The warehouse in Kent looked ready for the great deluge. There were sandbags piled neatly around the perimeter and we had to climb in the front door of the place. I figured it was preparation for the dam failure, but they seemed to say it was normal flood season prep. We got the bottles home safely. Thanks go to Joel for the generous use of his vehicle. I was on my own...
Read MoreLabel of the Month: LotM for November
Fanna Wrecked ‘Em’s Player Profile Favorite Beverage : wine – cheap or spendy, I’m not picky, as long as it’s not pink. The above player profile quote is what I turned up while searching for more info on the Derby Girl wine label of the month for November. What I knew: Derek DesVoignes is a winemaker friend of mine (or more friends with Jon, but let’s not get too technical) owning and operating the Woodinville winery Cuillin Hills. Cuillin Hills is a classic Washington micro-winery specializing in Rhône-style Syrah and producing roughly 1000 cases per...
Read MoreSetiembre on the Farm
Ten days ago, I arrived back to the farm, jolly, clean and eager to do some damage to some apple suckers. Oo, oo, it was a quick start to the dirt as a visit to the rental shop brought us this little beauty. Our new toy came equipped with an earth moving bucket in the front and 2, 2 foot shanks in the back. Oh my, what a marvel! So, it was done, and the John Deere 450 was to be delivered that afternoon. We departed the rental shop to the words “Good luck. You’ll find things you never knew you had.” Hmm. I thought I heard that one somewhere before. No matter. Off, to the...
Read MoreThis time in 4 years we'll be picking grapes!
Dust. Dust. Dust. dust. bust. pust. qust. think that one’s a scrabble word? All I can smell right now is dust. My wine smells like dust, my “clean” clothes smell like dust. My eyes are leaking dust, I can’t hear out of my left ear ’cause I think it’s full of DUST. We started off the week at Sesto Cielo’s 10 acres, ambitiously believing we could shank it all in 2 days. HAH! my friends. The heavens above have something else in store for our little orchard, fallowed be thy name. We managed to shank the NW quadrant in 3 days and I am trying to maintain...
Read MoreWomen of Wine – WoW I
For my first entry on the WoW – Women of Wine, I have chosen my mentor to be the Madame Veuve Clicquot. Madame Clicquot was born in 1777 Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin. She was married at 21 to François Clicquot whose businesses were involved in banking, wool trading, and Champagne. His untimely death six years after their marriage in 1805 left Barbe-Nicole une veuve, or a widow. Fortunately for the world of sparkling wine, Madame Clicquot successfully developed her husband’s Champagne business into the elite Champagne company that still bears her name today, Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin,...
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