The End is in Sight

Yesterday and today are our last days picking for the season! The Chambourcin and the Norton are on their way into the barrel room and getting ready to be processed. I came in this morning and the boys were already hard at work, but they had a bit of extra spring in their step... They know that all of their hard work is paying off. But dont think this is the end of their work, they still need to process and tend to the wines to keep them in tip-top shape.

Norton on the vine... but not for long!

The Merlot and the Petite Verdot were put into barrels, so now the only wines left to deal with are both of the Cabernets (Franc & Sauvignon) and the Chambourcin and Norton. One little note about the Chambourcin grapes. I snagged a bunch when they boys werent looking yesterday and tasted them and I thought they were wonderful! It was later explained to me that the seeds were very "ripe". Apparently seeds can give seed tannins to a wine, which can sometimes leave the wine a bit bitter.. but the seeds in the Chambourcin will not do that because they are so ripe. If you look at them they are more of a chocolate color then the other seeds I've seen which are more like an oatmeal color.

Its a beautiful day at the vineyard, and today will (sadly) be my last day of serving freshly picked grapes in the tasting room until next harvest... so come keep me company today!