Wine: The Long and the Short of It is a podcast about wine appreciation. It's been shortlisted for the Irish Podcast Awards. I guess I'll have to give it a go.
A chronicle of our preposterous journey to grow wine grapes and make wine in the west of Ireland, where the mountains come down to the sea along the Wild Atlantic Way.
Saturday 30 September 2023
Friday 29 September 2023
Tying up the vines
We didn't rack today as Alex absentmindedly stirred the must this morning. We can't rack tomorrow as he is doing BIM work on the strand. Maybe Sunday.
I walked the vineyard to check for storm damage. Two roses had broken stems and a few vines had broken sections from whipping around in the wind but overall not too bad. The weather today was spectacular in between short showers.
One Chardonnay, with substantial growth this year needed a new stake as its stake was broken at ground level. Must have been caused by the windage in Storm Agnes. Alex found two more vines that needed new stakes so we spent the afternoon working in the vineyard.
The vines had experienced significant growth over the last month and the Pinot Noir and Albariño had shot up significantly. So I tied them up. Most are now reaching the top of their stakes so pruning this year will be more radical.
Interestingly, I got a nice surprise. I noticed multiple vines with grape clusters, some of which were just beginning veraison. I don't know if there's enough good weather left to get them ripe before the end of the season, but it's a sign of possibilities.
Thursday 28 September 2023
Time to rack
Wine Auction
Billionaire Pierre Chen is selling 25,000 bottles of wine including burgundies valued at £156,000 and a very rare 1982 Pétrus. The most valuable wine collection that ever came to market could fetch £41m. He has collected these bottles over the course of 40 years.
Chen, 66, is the founder and chair of Yageo Corporation, which makes electronic components for cars, computers and mobile phones. He is ranked only 466th on Forbes’ rich list, with a fortune estimated at $5.5bn. He considers wine an art form as he believes the winemaker must inject his/her own creativity into it.
I'll drink to that.
So if he collected these wines and he thinks they are art for the senses, why didn't he drink any of them to experience his art?
Wednesday 27 September 2023
Bracing for Agnes
Storm Agnes is upon us, and we are fortunate in Mayo. Cork is getting battered, with roofs off buildings, trees down, flooding and power outages. Because the wind is SE-ly, we hardly feel it at our house. It looks like the irregular eye may pass over us. So far the wind has only gusted to ~ 46 knots according to the anemometer at MSC.
1300h |
1700 h - the eye over Mayo |
Tuesday 26 September 2023
Cleaning up
Pinot Noir |
Yesterday, I checked on the vineyard and found several Pinot Noir vines had broken free from their posts in the last episode of wind. So I tied them up before the massive storm that may hit us tomorrow. In the process, I found one bunch of grapes still tiny and hard and nowhere near veraison. Oh well, I hope that's not a sign of things to come with the Pinot. I remain hopeful.
I removed all the CDs I could spot, most of which were so twisted around the vines and wires that I had to cut them free. I had washed the white bags and yesterday removed any remaining grapes inside the bags, folded them neatly, and put them away for next year. I also retrieved the green bags from the storage box in the vineyard. I am those today and may fold those, too, but there's an awful lot of them. Three garbage bags full. That will be a chore. I am washing them stuffed into mesh bags for delicate laundry.
We are supposed to be getting tons of rain and high wind tomorrow from Storm Agnes, but it's sunny, still, and warm here at the moment. They said it might not reach us if it wobbles a bit. Met Eireann has issued orange warnings for Cork and Kerry.
The roses in the vineyard are about to bloom massively. I hope Agnes doesn't ruin the show.
Three huge bags stuffed full of green mesh bags |
Two loads in delicate wash bags |
Saturday 23 September 2023
Still bubbling
Every day, Alex opens the vats and stirs the must because the pulp settles and needs to be stirred to keep the fermentation going. The Solaris was not bubbling when Alex opened it but the Rondo was. I'll go up later in the day and see if the Solaris started bubbling up again as it did yesterday.