Growth of the Grape

I've documented the growth of the grape vine this year. In the following pictures, I've got examples of the vine from before bud break all the way through the year.

Since grape vines are self pollinating, there is no need for bees or any other insects to carry the pollen. This is a crucial time in the vineyard because the weather can't be too windy or rainy or it will effect the crop for the rest of the year. In 2008, it was late by a couple of weeks, but perfect.

Verasion - This is when the sugers start to rise and the aciditydrops. As you can see, this is where the grapes start to change color. This actually happens fairly quickly as the sugars start to rise.

I think that 2008 will turn out to be a very good vintage. The fruit looked great. The year started out about two weeks late which had everyone nervous in early September because we weren't sure if the fruit would be ripe or not. Our falls can be very cold and wet. Luckily, it turned out great. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Cheers,

Ron

2008 Crush

Bud break this year (2008) came roughly two to three weeks late. That simply means that in an already short growing season in Oregon that the date set for harvesting wine grapes in the

Northern Willamette Valley is going to slide from mid September into October. If you are familiar with the weather here, that is also a point of concern for the vineyard managers and wine makers. October here is typically wet and cold. As of mid September, people were getting a bit nervous. But then the weather got perfect and the grapes were allowed to slowly ripen to near perfection and now the wine makers are all very happy people - though very tired.
I've had the opportunity this year to help two wineries out at crush this season. In the picture, I'm forking in Pinot Noir grapes into a de-stemmer at Styring Vineyards. They are a very small winery making some excellent Pinot's but since they are a very small operation, many things are done a bit more manually. I literally, by hand, shoveled in 10 1/2 tons of fruit into a destemmer over a period of three days.
Between, before and after that activity is cleaning. Many people ask me what all you do when you make wine. Well, you clean - A LOT! Everything that the fruit touches has to be completely clean and sterile. So everything goes through several cleanings before and after each use. I spent one day while working at Anderson Family Vineyards cleaning 5 gallon buckets. Everything has to be clean, clean, clean. It's not always fun, but it has to get done and done well. I figured that if I'm going to clean buckets, these are going to be the cleanest darn buckets around! Why not?
I'll run you through the process of wine making. When the grapes are picked and brought to the "crush pad" (this is where it basically starts for the winery", the grapes are weighed. Then they are sorted. When you sort, you are removing leaves, un ripe grapes or grapes that are bad anyway and anything else you don't want in the wine. Then the grapes are de-stemmed. The grapes fall into a fermentation bin and the stems go into another bin to be composted into the vineyard. Once you fill a fermentation bin, the bin is taken into the winery where the wine maker is going to do some quick lab tests to check the PH of the wine, temperature and suger levels. The exposed area of the inside of the bin is cleaned again (seriously) and then if the grapes are too warm, dry ice is added so the grapes can go through what is called a cold soak. After 3-5 days in a cold soak, the temperature is allowed to raise gradually and then fermentation will start. That will take about a week or so for the grapes to ferment. Then the grapes are pressed, put in French oak barrels and allowed to age for 8 - 18 months depending on the wine maker.
I think 2008 is going to go down in Oregon anyway as fantastic vintage and maybe one of the best in a long time. It's hard, wet work, long hours and you are very tired and sore for weeks, but it's worth it! I can't wait for next year.

Cheers!

Vista Balloon Adventures

We recently had the great pleasure to enjoy a ride with Roger at Vista Balloon Adventures.  The day we picked was about as perfect as you could hope for.  

We lifted off at 7:08 am from the air park in Newberg, Oregon.  

I have an incredible fear of heights so I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about this...

I have to say that it did not bother me at all!  The

 crews are exceptional and very professional.  You will have a great time and see the country-side in a way you can only enjoy in a hot air balloon.  The one thing I really noticed and enjoyed was how peaceful it was.  The burner on the balloon is a bit loud and warm, but after that, it's so peaceful

.  It truly is just floating on the breezes.  There is no sensation of movement at all and I don't know why, but I felt completely comfortable.  I can't even stand near the rail on our hotel room balcony if we are above the third or fourth floor!  Seriously - the balloons are incredibly easy to ride and comfortable.  

At certain elevations you would suddenly feel a breeze and then as you gently ascended or descended, the breeze would change or just vanish.  Roger took us down to the Willamette River and sat us down ever so easy just on the water for a minute before slowly rising up above the river once again.  What an experience.

The ride is short because the air currents become a bit more turbulent as the sun warms the air.  You have landed by 8:15 or so where the ground crew is waiting to load the balloon up and take you to an excellent breakfast and champagne

 toast.  The brunch was excellent with a nice variety of foods, a chance to share your experience with others and the ability to talk more with the pilots if you like.

This is an exciting and beautiful way to start your wine tour.  I would be happy to pick people up from their flight and continue on with a tour of the wineries you were just looking down on like a soaring bird. 

The area is some of the most beautiful countryside anywhere.  You can see vineyards all around, mountian peeks, rivers, wild life and rich farm land.  

Call Vist Balloon Adventures for more information.  

Cheers!

Corked Wines

Have you ever opened a bottle of wine to find it smelling like a wet dog? That is commonly caused by a bacteria in the cork called trichloroanisole or TCA. That is why so many wineries are looking to different closures for wine. The most common is the screw cap or Stelvin Enclosure. There are also synthetic corks and a new product which is a glass cork. I'm thinking you will start seeing more and more of these. I've attached a link to this entry which explains cork taint, how to identify it and what exactly it is. You won't get sick or worse drinking "tainted" wine, but it sure takes the enjoyment out of a good bottle of wine. That is exactly why I think that the screw cap is going to be the way to go.
Like you, I still enjoy hearing that "pop" when a bottle is opened, but I absolutely hate smelling that wine and realizing that the very nice, non replaceable bottle of wine I just opened for my dinner guests is worse than a jug of cheap wine...
The question I have is; if a bottle of wine that has been ruined by cork taint is corked, is a bottle of wine which has gone bad because the seal on a screw cap failing, is it "screwed"?

Cheers!

VIP Tours

Oregon Wine Tours was recently chosen to provide a VIP tour to her Excellency Claudia Fritsche; Ambassador of the principality of Liechtenstein. We were referred to the Ambassador by two resources as being the best tour company in the area. We were able to provide a very high end tour for the Ambassador and her group with private tastings with some of the areas best wineries. Pictured is Doug Tunnell of Brick House Winery showing the Ambassador his vineyards and the surrounding Chehalem Ridge AVA. We also were able to provide an excellent lunch thanks to the help of the Dundee Bistro. They were able to set up an excellent meal on short notice for us and did a splendid job.
The ambassador was in town for a speaking engagement at Lewis and Clarke college and for an opening at Lawrence Galleries in Portland for a prominent artist from Liechtenstein. Being from a family that has made wine for hundreds of years, she loved the beauty of Oregon's wine country and enjoyed the local wines very much.
I really appreciate being referred to the Ambassador and her group. I think we have worked hard to be recommended to such a high profile person and I'm proud to be thought of so highly.
Remember though, the reason I started this was to be able to make sure that anyone could walk into a tasting room and not feel intimidated. When you join us on a tour, I want you to meet the people that have created that passion for wine in me and experience that for yourself first hand.

Cheers!

Ron

Fantastic Wines - 2002 Panther Creek Temperance Hill Pinot Noir

Being in the wine industry and being a person who really appreciates wine, I have to say that my wife and I enjoyed a bottle of wine the other night that really made an impression with me. We happened to be at the beach and enjoying a nice meal of Salmon with some shrimp and brown rice with a bottle of 2002 Panther Creek Temperance Hill Pinot Noir.
Michael Stevenson is the wine maker at Panther Creek. Not only is Michael a very nice person but I respect his wine making abilities tremendously. This wine was absolutely beautiful. Everything about that wine was really enjoyable to me. I've cellared that bottle for several years and decided that this was a good night to enjoy a special bottle. You don't always need some special occasion to enjoy a nice bottle of wine either. I feel that every now and then, you should just enjoy one of your nicer bottles instead of waiting for your anniversary or New Years Eve...
When you go out tasting or on our tour and you taste a wine you really like, please buy it from the winery. Cellar it properly and give the wine at least a couple of years to come to age. My wife is a great cook and this evening was just a good opportunity for her and I to enjoy a really nice wine with a really nice meal.
The wine was, to me, just the thing to make that evening a very special evening. No special event. No birthday or anniversary. But Michael's wine making "gift" in a bottle made from a great Northwest vineyard created a very memorable experience.
So thank you to Michael Stevenson at Panther Creek Cellars for a great bottle of wine. Thank you to my wife for making a fantastic meal!
There have been a few evenings within the last six months where a wine has sincerely left a mark on me. The last wine I had that really, really impressed me was a bottle of 1996 Domaine Drouhin Pinot Noir. We opened that on vacation in California this last December 8th at the Napa Rose in Anaheim California. The master sommelier on duty that night thought that we had brought in a bottle of 1989 DRC La Toche. Not sure if I'm spelling that correctly... Again, a wine that made an evening incredible. So don't wait for some special event, create the event by enjoying one of those wines with someone special. That's the special event!

Cheers,

Ron

Beginning Our Fourth Year with Exciting New Things!

Ok everyone. You are the first to hear the news. I'm starting a new business as part of Oregon Wine Tours, Inc. I've been thinking (honestly) about doing some wine education, but one of my pet peeves is a person doing wine education with out the proper education or certification to do so. Harry Ryan has been a good friend of ours for many years and has taught me a great deal. He has driven for me since I started and now it's time we take this a step forward. Harry is a certified sommelier trough the Court of Master Sommeliers. He is also certified as a wine educator. He is a professional wine judge. He has worked for years making wine and in the tasting room. He has taught hundreds of people in a class room like setting. He is highly sought after for his knowledge and experience. He knows more about biodynamic farming than most. He has worked under what I consider one of the best wine makers anywhere. He has been studying for his Master Sommelier title for several years now. I'm very lucky to be able to work with Harry and to call him a friend. He knows his wine, he is passionate about it and is excellent at teaching it. I've learned a great deal from him and I hope you can too.
I'm introducing Wine Education To Go. I'm combining a wine tour and structured, class room wine education. When you think about it, who wants to learn about anything in a room? The best way to learn is to be interactive. Well, we can't exactly go into a winery and start stomping on grapes, but you can see the equipment, touch the equipment and even smell the equipment. You learn about the soils by looking at, touching and yes, smelling the soil.
We will have three different classes all built on the same structure. We visit three wineries. Each one with a specific focus on a wine topic. You will be given a booklet at the start of the tour with all of the information you will cover during the day. Plenty of photographs, drawings and easy to read text on your wine course.
First is the wine evaluation. Basically how to taste and evaluate the wine from the perspective of a wine judge. After all, Harry Ryan is a wine judge. You will learn in detail what the color and other visual attributes mean to a wine. Learn about the bouquet of the wine and start to develop that sense of smell. Taste the wine and learn to pick up those hints in the back of the taste...
The next stop we start to learn about Oregon's wine history, the soils and AVA's and what makes Oregon, Oregon. We go into the winery where we see the equipment used in making the wine and talk about the different choices the wine maker has when making their wine. Why they use native yeast instead of packaged and other choices they make. One thing I am frequently asked is how do they get that strawberry or cherry taste in the wine? Do they put berries in when fermenting the wine? We talk about that.
Then wrap it all up at the end of the day with extensive food and wine pairings. We provide several types of foods and a couple of different wines to try different combinations of whites and reds with fruits, cheeses, meats, nuts, chocolates and so on. You might be surprised what you can learn here. I've certainly learned to keep an open mind!
I've just posted the web site so we are now official. I've spent hours and hours to prepare this. Again, I've designed the web site myself, created the logo which isn't a huge stretch from Oregon Wine Tours, but it's that way for a reason. Harry Ryan has done the printed material and I've edited it and put it in the format which we use in each class.
The groups will always be between 6 and 10 people so you get very individual attention. The classes are fun, interactive, you taste some nice wines and learn a ton about wine. It is an intense day of learning.
Ultimately I want to start providing tasting room consulting, train tasting room staff on wine and how to better serve their guests. I've seen too many tasting rooms with people who knew nothing about wine and trying to b.s. their way through answering questions. I've seen too many tasting rooms where they pour the wines in no particular order and trash talking other wineries. I am the biggest preacher on wine should be fun and unpretentious, but... Not stuffy, just proper. Be able to answer basic questions and be able to make the experience more enjoyable for everyone.
I hope this works as well as I think it will. Any comments? Please give me your thoughts on this.
Go enjoy a nice bottle of wine with a loved one.

Cheers!