Licenses & fees

We're not ready to make wines yet, but the time may come this year when we may actually have a crop of grapes to try fermentation. We decided that if we didn't succeed in making wine, we'd go the distillation route to an eau de vie or vodka. So I have begun my research into what it would take.

It is illegal to distill for home use in Ireland. It is illegal to distill without a licence regardless of whether you intend to sell it or not. Plain and simple. In several other countries you apparently can but not in Ireland. Unless you use brewing vodka kits, with no distillation. There are robust yeasts that can get quite high alcohol concentration without distillation. These are just neutral wines which are treated with carbon to reduce smell and taste. Alcohol can be tax relieved in the case of wine, beer or other fermented beverage produced at home for personal use and not for sale, but it must be authorized by Revenue.

Clearing the grass

Croagh Patrick, the Holy Mountain

The weather was beautiful today so we took a walk to the summit of our land to see the views, plant a few more trees and enjoy the St. Stephen's Day holiday. The views were stunning but the land is very wet. The trees we have been planting out on about 1/3 of our ten acres are doing very nicely. The leader species - birch, willow, and alder - are growing vigorously. The ash and sycamores are coming along nicely too, but at a slower pace.

Pruning the grapevines

What a mess!

The job was daunting. We'd been gone most of the summer sailing, which isn't prudent when you are trying to start a vineyard, but hey it's all an adventure isn't it? Meanwhile, the weather had been mild and moist until last week when we finally had a cold snap. Frost, sleet, hail and snow finally put the vines to sleep and they dropped their leaves so we could see the structure of the vines themselves. And what we saw was not pretty. I kept going up there and coming back down without having done a thing.

LA region fires affect vineyards

First it was the northern wine country; now the Skirball fires are ripping through the outskirts of Los Angeles. Almost 200 homes have been destroyed by the fires which remain out of control. About 200,000 people have been told to evacuate. Loss of power is reported at more than 250,000 homes in Ventura County. The San Diego Freeway was closed. Fueled by hot Santa Ana winds, it is unusual that a wildfire like this has ripped through in December. A state of emergency has been declared yet again.

Fall has finally arrived in the vineyard

Fall arrived, if only for one day. Today it's back to warm and wet but yesterday it was cool, crisp, and sunny with frost overnight. The red vines have dropped their leaves but the white vines and hanging on. The grass and weeds have control. Next have to get out there with a shovel and dig out the docks. Then Alex will have to strim. Finally we will go in and select out the main shoots and prune away the rest. Then Alex can build the overhead trellis system we'll be adopting from Spain. Trying to be patient.

Red vines have dropped most of their leaves

White vines hanging on to leaves

Damage to vineyards and operations

Wine Spectator is reporting on the damage to winemaking operations and vineyards due to the fires in California:

Updates on Wineries here...

Expected impact on the vintage here...

Status of evacuations here...

Some ways you can help the California fire victims

Google Crisis Map 

California’s Wine Country is in a state of emergency as more than a dozen wildfires burn through large swaths of land in Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino, Lake, and Yuba counties. The fires have destroyed at least 3,500 homes, caused at least 30 fatalities, and forced an estimated 25,000+ residents to evacuate, with that number expected to rise. 8000 firefighters are involved in the fight, some from as far away as Australia.

Our first harvest

A few more red grapes.

This is for the white crop.

Well, we aren't going to be making wine just yet, nor is there enough for a jar of jam. But tasting these delicious tiny morsels that explode with flavour has been fun. We decided to pick today because we are expecting Hurricane Ophelia to hit on Monday. It might even cause a stock market crash according to an article in Forbes. Another article in Forbes today describes how rare it is for hurricanes to come up our way. We figured it was time to get ready, especially since another system would be affecting us in the days leading up to Ophelia.

Wine country fires

After

Before

My heart goes out to all the Californians whose lives are completely disrupted by the horrendous fires raging through Napa and Sonoma. Dry conditions and strong winds caused such rapid escalation and devastation. More than 50,000 acres engulfed in Napa. Many injuries, at least ten known dead and the toll is likely to rise.

They said the grape harvest has already been completed for most, but the impact on the wineries and vineyards is inestimable at this time. Growing grapes and making wine is a labor of love. Many livelihoods and lives will have been destroyed by this tragic development.

From grapes to raisins

Picking some red grapes

The red grapes we had this year were small but very tasty. There were no white grapes on the three year old vines at all. The new vines are all alive and doing reasonably well. The vineyard itself is terribly overgrown, but I plan to go up and dig out the biggest of the weeds and clear around the plants. Then I plan to select out the best main shoots, which have already become woody. I have to wait to prune until the plants go dormant. Next year will be the real test I believe. Meanwhile, the tiny grapes are shriveling into raisins.

Wine statistics

From Wine Time on Facebook. 

We have grapes!

We returned after two months away sailing in Spain to find the vineyard overgrown with grass and vines trailing every which way. But all the new vines have survived and we have grapes! Our three-year old Rondo vines are producing sweet, albeit small, red grape clusters. We have not found any white grapes yet.

Our trip to Galicia Spain, home of albarino wines

Alex and I spent two months cruising on our boat in the northwest region of Spain this summer. It was a remarkable trip for so many reasons. First, the Rias Baixas in the region south of Finisterre are a superb cruising area, with multiple Rias or inlets that have an interesting coastline, lovely old villages and towns, beautiful barrier islands, the best seafood in the world, temperate weather, and fine wines. Oh, and it's not very expensive.

Daria's Vineyard included in an article about winemaking in Ireland

A very interesting article written by Gaby Guedez for The Taste magazine on "The past, present and future of winemaking in Ireland" features this blog and our effort. We are honoured to be included in such a prestigious media outlet and well researched and written article. Many thanks, Gaby. We will keep you abreast of our progress.

http://thetaste.ie/wp/the-past-present-and-future-of-winemaking-in-ireland-july-edition/

Success in the new plantings

It's nice to report that all the newly planted vines have taken, have leafed and grown to about a foot tall. That's a relief. Even the Chardonnay test vines have sprouted and actually look more vigorous than the others. Yea!

The original vines planted in 2015 have grown massively this season, as everything else seems to have done, and are flowering profusely, both red and white. We may actually have a small harvest this year. Next year we must prune without reserve. First, we have to learn how.

“Professional wine courses for amateurs or aficionados, using e-learning, so allowing you to follow your course from home, 24/7″.

New vineyard underway

Well the older vines are thriving with lots of tiny flower bunches, the chardonnay test vines are alive and well, and the new solaris vines are all waking up. This is exciting. Much better than watching grass grow.

New chardonnays

They're alive!

Checking on the new vines

Alex pointing out the flower buds

Our vines are sprouting. The two-year old vines are loaded with little clusters of flower buds along with their leaflets and tendrils. This weather has prompted everything to come to life. It's so encouraging to see. Even the little rondo that didn't do much last year has come to life.

Spring is sprung

Solaris 3-yo vines

There is so much to be done, and Alex has done half of the major work already. Half the new vines have been dug in. Unfortunately, I cant help much as I have a pinched nerve in my hand causing excruciating pain. The rain has ceased and we have dry but cooler than normal weather. Unfortunately, we also have too many things happening at once: book launches, health issues, holidays, volunteer commitments, lectures, incessant travel. We have work to do on the boat on the garden, on ourselves. Have we bitten off more than we can chew? (What a funny expression!)

Rondo just waking up

New chardonnay, freshly planted and budding

Building a vineyard

Earlier this week in Daria's Vineyard

Alex has been very busy planting fence posts in the field. He bought a trailer load on Monday and by Friday he had a good number of them planted. That's the hardest part of creating a vineyard. He is working very hard while the vines sit in clumps in the ground awaiting their day in the sun. 

The soil is curious. It has a clay in it that almost feels sandy. We really should have it analyzed to tell us what it is. But our philosophy is that if grapes love poor soil, then these grapes are sure to get it. Fortunately for Alex, the ground is quite soft now and the light NW winds are cooling us off as we work. 

I've been weeding and pruning the vegetable garden. 

Progress made by Friday

Grape vines have arrived

Bare rooted vines have arrived just as Alex was building the new fence around the field area we set aside for the chardonnay vines. So he quickly planted the chardonnay and started digging in fence posts for the rest, back breaking work. Luckily, he bought the fence posts just the day before yesterday.

The new vines are solaris like the first four we planted experimentally. They've done reasonably well. Alex thinks he had ordered 25 vines, but two bundles of 25 arrived. When we checked the order, we realized he had ordered the 50. That's a lot of holes to dig.

We will now be officially a vineyard with 54 solaris vines, 5 chardonnay and 6 reds. They are Vitis solaris FR60 on SO4 rootstock, clone 31 Op. Full details below.

Floods and vineyards

When it's climate change and not global warming, what we face is extremes of nature not a gradual shift. This year exemplified how unpredictable the climate has become. After years of drought, vintners in California are treading water wondering what will happen to this years' crop. The Russian River Valley flooded under feet of water and more rain was on the way. Luckily the vines were dormant.

But it wasn't just in California and Nevada that rain wreaked havoc. Australia's Swan Valley and the south of France and Italy experienced periods of heavy downpours and flooding in 2016. And it's become a recurring nightmare.

Fortunately, that's one thing we are not likely to have to worry about as our vineyard is on a nicely sloping hill. All the water runs down to the sea, but we have to ensure that the topsoil doesn't go with it. That's why we have left the grass around the vines. Right or wrong, it's our current choice.

The wines of Lombardy

Terraced vineyards in Lombardy

Moving a bit too fast to photograph the vineyards en route.

We just got back from Italy, skiing in the Alpine resort of Livigno. It's a 4-hour trip from Milan's airport. Along the way, we saw grapes being grown on the tiniest of plots, and terraced up the steep hills. They grow the grapes vertically, tied to individual sticks until the vines are strong enough to stand up on their own. That's a recommended technique for Chardonnay which keeps air passing through thereby reducing mold so, was interesting to see. We saw a sign up on the hill with "Inferno" written on it and learned later that it is one of the typical wines of the region, and the first we were able to sample.

Lake Como on a hazy winter's day

Lombardy’s most popular mountain destination is Valtellina. Bordering with Lake Como in the south and with Switzerland in the north, Valtellina extends for 200 kilometers in a varied landscape beginning at an altitude of 200m, reaching an height of 4000m at Bernina. The sun-bathed valley floor is cultivated with apples, replaced by woods and terraced vineyards as you ascend. Here the Nebbiolo grapes produce excellent red wines. The interesting history of winemaking here dates back to before Roman times when the Etruscans and Ligurians produced wines. It is thought that the Nebbiolo grape was introduced to the region by the Benedictine Monks in the early Middle Ages. .

The vines are awakening

It's just two days into Spring and the buds are getting robust. The white vines are slightly behind the red ones in development. Now's the time to keep a close eye on their development.

Red grape vine budding strongly

White grape vine just beginning

Chardonnay vines have arrived

I know, I know, they don't look like much. Well they aren't really. I only bought five plants as an experiment. Everyone says they won't work here, but someone has said that for every thing that anyone has ever attempted for the first time. Climate change is accelerating faster than anyone thought, so maybe I am right. Maybe not.

Now why would I want chardonnay when some people preach ABC - anything but chardonnay? Because chardonnay is a grape varietal with an identity crisis. Developing a fine chardonnay in your backyard has to do with both where its grown and how it is made. I am thinking Chablis, the fine French vintage, not Gallo who tainted chablis as serious white plonk.

We have clay soil as does the Chablis region of France. Chablis is made from 100% chardonnay grapes gown in clay soil. The Chardonnay varietal is expressive as a rainbow or generic as a blank label. She can be both a rock star and a street hawker, a prima ballerina and a cheap harlot. Why does Chardonnay have this split personality? Because she takes on the characteristics of the soil, the conditions and the maker more so than any other varietal.

Can I make a great Chablis?  I won't know until I try. Anyway, it will be years before my chardonnay vines let me do that.

For now, I'm learning what I can about how to get started.

Chardonnay bare root grapevines clone D258 Duft on SO4 31 Op rootstocks @ €5 each. €33.45 w/P/P

What it may look like one day. 

Source of grapevines: Grape Expectations, 29 Carrickmount Ave, Rathfarnham, Dublin 14, Ireland 
Phone 00353 86 8878047

Expansion

We just ordered 50 vines (Solaris SO4) @2.60 ea from Derek Pritchard of Winegrowers Supplies in Somerset England.  They will be shipped in early April. We wanted to buy some chardonnay vines to test but he wouldn't sell us any saying they were too late ripening for our area. Curious that someone would refuse to sell us something we wanted to try. We'll get them from another grower.

Now that we've had 4 vines to experiment with, hopefully we'll make fewer mistakes with the next batch. This is exciting.

Finally managed to prune and train

Last week, we had a spell of beautiful weather after several days of strong frost.  As it's already February and things are starting to bud, I thought it was time to take the plunge ad prune. I documented my work by taking one photo of each vine so I can compare this year's growth to Next year's. Here we are.

Red grape vines (Rondo) 

The red grape vines were variable in their take. Two did well, two did poorly and one is mediocre.

Wicklow Wines on RTE radio

Nice interview with Wicklow Wines, who are making fruit wines in Ireland. They started with strawberry, blackberry and elderberry, all of which grow naturally here. They don't make it with water the old wives traditional way, they press the fruit like grapes. Pam and Brett launched their limited edition strawberry wine at Bloom 2016, to good reviews. From meadow to glass, Móinéir wines reflect the unique characteristics of the Irish countryside... the terroir concept moves to Ireland.

Listen to the interview here:  http://rte.ie/r.html?rii=b9_21112161_1523_07-01-2017_

Here is their website. https://www.wicklowwaywines.ie/

Where to buy or try.  Have to remember to buy a bottle at McCambridge's in Galway. Or we can go to Pantry & Corkscrew in Westport and try a glass there. Interesting that it's being carried by Aniar. JP must like it = quite an endorsement.