A new protected designation in the Netherlands

A protected designation of origin (PDO) "Rivierenland" for wine, quality sparkling wine, semi-sparkling wine and wine from dried grapes was published in the Official Journal of the EU C 315 of August 19, 2022, the EC notification 2022/C 315/06.

Depending on the type of product, the minimum alcohol content is between 5 % and 12 % vol. Depending on the variety, the maximum yield per hectare is 40-60 hectoliters. The varieties are exclusively PIWI, of which there are 14 in total, ten of which come from Germany and 4 from Switzerland. The white PIWI varieties are Cabernet blanc, Johanniter, Merzling, Muscaris, Sauvignac, Solaris, Souvignier gris and Villaris. The blue PIWI varieties are Cabaret noir, Cabernet Cantor, Cabernet Cortis, Monarch, Pinotin and Regent.

Official Journal of the EU C 315 of August 19, 2022; Jiří Sedlo

Winter drama

Sun setting over Daria's Vineyard

Winter has arrived in the west with all the drama that later sunrises and earlier sunsets create. Today was a spectacular day, after the morning fog, crisp, dry for the most part, and still -- very still. The kind of still that recreates the landscape upside down in reflections on the water. I just love watching upside-down sheep romping along liquid green fields. 

In Ireland, winter arrives officially on the 1st of November by the Gaelic or Celtic calendar. Winter or Geimhreadh starts the day after Halloween (referred to in Ireland as Samhain). The Gaelic calendar also protends that February 1st is actually the start of spring.

Today's sunrise at about 8 AM

Starts                         Ends                              Meteorological Winter in Ireland    1st of December        31st of February Astronomical Winter in Ireland       21st of December      20th of March Traditional Gaelic Seasons              1st November          31st of January

The wispy clouds did their magic at both sunrise and sunset, turning hot pink in salutations to the sun. The occasional drip of showers created rainbows all day long without actually interfering with outdoor life. It made for solemn reflections about life for the planet's now 8 billion people, a landmark reached yesterday.

There is still a lot of activity in the garden. The bees were buzzing mid-day as the air warmed up. One rose bloomed in the vineyard in anticipation. Lots of wildflowers are still showing off. Yet storm clouds on the horizon foretell what's to come. 

The short days (sunset at about 4:30 PM now) make working in the garden a challenge. But every good hour is put to maximum good use. Yesterday, we made a new flower bed for the agapanthus we brought over from Ross House and cleaned up parts of the flower gardens. But the messages from biodiversity groups pleading to leave the leaves on the ground to provide shelter for bumblebees and other insects convinced me to stop short of sweeping them all up. It's all in the interest of pollinators, those they pollinate, and those that eat them. I can surely put some work off if it's going to save the world. 

Autumn has finally arrived

Leaves gone off the trees

We've had wind, lots of it. We've had rain, loads of rain. We've had extraordinarily high tides. We've had warmth for days, but now it has turned cold. The leaves have been blown off the trees, the flowers are shutting down, the bees have gone to sleep. 

A few of the supports in the vineyard have suffered and need replacing. The leaves have fallen off the vines. The must we had fermenting went bad. (Not too upset. Had expected as much.) And the days are very dark indeed as we head into the weary weeks of winter. 

I have signed up for a course on winemaking and I have 6 weeks to complete it before my final exam. My reward will be a certificate I can hang on the wall of the new shed we are building to house the equipment. That may yet get me through the darkness and into light. 

In the meantime, I am trying to find places to fit all the stuff from Alex's mom's house, the beekeeping equipment, and the winery supplies. I need to clear stuff out. It's driving me crazy. 

The road is gone. 

Dock trying to float onto the road

Tide on the driveway

Gusts of >75 knots

Unusually warm November

Temperatures are "exceptionally mild" for the time of year, with Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland all having the warmest November night on record. The temperature in Furnace near Newport never dropped below 15C on Friday and reached 18C during the day. Meteorologists say the mild weather is the result of a powerful jet stream bringing warm air up from the south as far as Cape Verdes. Average night-time temperatures in the British Isles at this time of year range between 4-6C.

It's certainly a bonus for millions of people who are concerned about heating bills, but is it a sign of a permanent shift in weather patterns, and how much is climate change playing a part?

Sea Temperatures off the coast of Ireland are almost at levels recorded during summertime, the head of forecasting at Met Éireann, Evelyn Cusack, has said. The unseasonably warm temperatures this month come after one of the wettest Octobers on record and the hottest summer in over 135 years. It's going to remain this warm right through to Monday. 

There are so many plants blooming and insects flying. It's just climate weirdness. 

Wine for sail

Cargo sailboat. Courtesy of Grain de Sail.

It seems that sailors are working toward decarbonising the delivery of wine by shipping it via sailboat. In fact, our friend Jaime Young is converting his boat into a cargo ship for similar reasons. Perhaps we shouldn't be selling Aleria. Given that we have Daria's Vineyard and Alex's Apiary, our wine label will be called Aleria, and we are using all-natural no-till sustainable techniques to grow and harvest the grapes, it's all fitting together.  

Hmmmm! Now all we have to do is figure out how to make decent wine. 

Warming weather

Hurricane Martin off the coast

We've got balmy weather today, with hurricane-force winds and torrential rain. But the temperatures are warm. Hurricane Martin is a giant blob that's about to make a right turn straight for us. Fortunately it is expected to fizzle but will still bring plenty of rain. 

An article in today's Irish Times says that October was the 17th consecutive month that was warmer than normal. Temperatures were 1.2 to 2.2 degrees above the monthly mean at 25 Met Eireann stations -- significantly above what is usual for this time of year. 

The Met Eireann Climate statement for October reinforced that monthly rainfall and temperatures were above the long-term average for October. There is pretty much no denying that we are in a downward spiral of climate change. COP 27 is coming up but there's little hope they will succeed. 

The origins of Rondo

Photo from Thomas Walk Vineyard website. 

I just came across this website for Thomas Walk Vineyard in the South of Ireland. The German winemaker Thomas Walk has been growing grapes and making wine for more than 30 years! They were the first to plant Rondo, formerly called “Amurensis Walk”.  It is not Vitis vinifera but rather Vitis amurensis which originated in Asia but was bred in what was once Czechoslovakia. This grape variety was further developed by the vine researcher Helmut Becker, the legendary "Reben-Becker", at the Geisenheim university located in the Rheingau. The variety is now called Rondo and forms the main crop of British viticulturists.

They have been practicing ecologic diversity and sustainability at Thomas Walk Vineyard since the beginning. Their method differs significantly from conventional viticulture and goes beyond the obligations of organic viticulture. They have published a table that highlights the differences between conventional, organic and their methods -- basically total sustainability. They don't use chemicals of any kind, they don't prune vigorously, and they strive for diversity rather than monoculture. Sounds familiar!

They are, however, very secretive and private. They ask for no visitors and sell their wines only through Germany. They do not plant cover crops, just cut what's there and leave as mulch. 

Despite several awards noted on their website, the few independent reviews online are not promising. Oh well. Perhaps I'll just have to try some and see for myself.