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Vintage 2010
Varieties
Backyard Grapes:
Foxy Grapes,
Pinot Noir,
Longford Shiraz,
Bought Fruit:
Pinot Gris(failed),
Bundy,
Longford Shiraz(good
so far)
Cidery,
Limonella,
PProduction, Longford Shiraz
Tasting Notes
longford Shiraz was delightful- peppery,
medium weight, not soft on the palate, but also not acidic. No funny after taste
and IMHO. much better than previous years
Pinot Noir as a wine came along okay, then turned to vinegar.
My own shiraz is softer, and fuller than the Longford, so I don't know whether
to blend it or not.
Shiraz Yard
shiraz pinot noir foxy grapes
This year (well- 2009)I learnt by January 2010 that we started with at least chardonnay bushes, pinot-noir bushes, and 15 shiraz in the portable section of the vineyard, and the usual 6 Old Shiraz and the
Foxy Grapes Garage bushes. Pruning in 2008 and 2007 gave 9 bushes in starter pots, from about 100 cuttings.
Above- measuring ripeness
2010
On 2 March 2010- picked the "garage aromatic grapes"
or Foxy grapes;
at 22 brix- should have waited, not a
great wine anyway, and not to 30 brix, will note this for next year.
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From Alistair and Catherine Hicks, Upper Maffra West,
near the Glenmaggie Weir, 4/Mar/10. Approx 4 buckets crushed from the morning pickings
gave 24.5 litres juice, and a 30 litre pomace. Brix was 23 today, or 12.5 Baume (yesterday). Crushed
and pressed, 1105 sg, not bad! First time with this grape variety, will see how we
go. The blurb on the Blue Gables label of Alistair’s 2009 vintage says fermented
and matured via young oak barrels- so will add some oak chips while it ferments.
Added ¼ teaspoons of DAP/Malic/Citric/Oxalic acids per litre to must, and 6
crushed Camden tablets as I want to use a commercial yeast strain, not wild.
Hope to thro the yeast tomorrow before we go to OG. The pomace, with stems and skins and wash downs, like
the old Foxy Garage Grape Pomace- Natural Yeasts to get them going, may
taste horrible, but may also get to
'still' it.
A helper with the crushing
Pinot gris
So, the pomace wine was bloody
awful- dad tasted it to confirm, I warned him! Into the Still with it. And after Easter tasted crappy, by July, too oxidised- into the Still... picked at 24
brix. Lost up to 10% , made up 2 litres
juice and skins. Will let ferment naturally.
So much! will see if any good, have to find really really small bottles,
Worked in the Winery and Vineyard-
well, I thought it
fermented out in the little jar- but being a pickekled onion jar- guess what?-
The Pinot was very volatile! Because it was
vinegar!!
When the Foxy grapes were 21 brix and picked, so were a few Shiraz grapes- panic!
Then realised need a bit more time though, I want 1.1-1.3sg or 30 brix. Picked 21 March as was going
to lose a lot- only got
7.5kg Shiraz juice- just like last year!
Think probably lost nearly 50% of the potted vines.
Wasn't quite ripe enough at 25
brix, but losing a lot- dried out /slowly rotting berries- had to harvest
before lost the rest. The planted vines were much better off-
the fruit beautiful, a little bit spicey as required, not very blackberryish at
all. So SMSed the must- hopefully will not get vinegar
from this lot!!
Threw yeast Monday- with a dash of
orange juice. Fingers crossed. Have processed about 5litres plus, so
should have half a dozen bottles this time next year. The fermentation went
well, and it tastes good. Big Note to Self- Longford Shiraz This year was allowed to grab 50kg off the
Stephenson-Lyn and Harry. Picked it myself, and charged 1.70$ for the privilege,
crushed and SMSd by midday 5 April. Commercial yeast added 6 April, and was
rocking evening of the 7th. Added DAP and a few acids and a good handful of oak
sawdust and shavings. Racked off 29 July, tasted good, added some KMS. Moved inside to start a
Malic Lactic fermentation.
After some pre-bottling treatment and bottle washing and sanitising, it was
Longford Shiraz bottling time on my little brothers birthday, 5 March, 2011.
Expenses
The
Golden --- Apple tree produced a
nice yield this summer but the birds and the girls got to
it...However, I have managed to save some of the new apples from the Cider Apple
tree, and one day, they can be defrosted. plum tree and
Loquat Trees were plentiful, but not utilised this year.
This year, besides the Bundy Oil Concoction, Limonella was
attempted again with 80-90% pure additions to the Zest of 18 lemons. Amount was
1.5 litres. Some was lost to tasting... In the end, we have enough, and a
liqueur was made with 150 grams water and 150 grams sugar added to 300 cl
limonella for an initial batch. Nice. top of
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or return to homepage Tony Ford. Copyright ©
1999-2010
[ADF]. All rights reserved. Revised: April 2000
Last years pruning gave me only three new cuttings from 60... Too late, should have planted much earlier- like late
July or August, not mid September after the budburst on the rest of the yard.
The irrigation method is now to fill saucers beneath the pots (new idea) about 2 or 3
litres, and on hot
days to also fill up a 2 litre plastic bottle in the top of the pot( upended with
the bottom cut off).
The 800 litre water tank that takes runoff from Alex's shed
is too hard to get going, and monitor- as is crowded. New thought is to put the
irrigation hose past the 'saucers' instead of into the top?
Anyway, the foliage and canopy
on all was really good, hopefully will not be sunburned and lose 20% like last year.
The canopy was reduced first week Feb to allow more sun in and to let the air circulate, as the netting
makes it a bit too still.
Insect and mildew
sprays were reduced this year- not a lot of high humidity, and not much grubs!
so far. The Chardonnay gave a few clusters, and the dang birds got them before they were even near starting
to swell up!! And Surprise Surprise, have Pinot 5 bushes now! The origins are dark
and misty, from an area that the NY wine writer gave a score of over 90 for a late
80s vintage...
Vintage
Foxy Garage Grapes
22 kilograms, lovely day, picked at 10.30am, crushed at
12.30pm, pressed at 1.00pm.
11 litres
Juice at 1085 sg
after "first pressing"
so may get an even dozen bottles,
or 3 liters of a brandy!
11.5% possible wine, or 225gm/litre sugar or 1085 SG
20 litres
pomace production too- of skins, twigs and some juice, for Brandy
making.
its the garage grape- very
aromatic, slightly off sort of nose, will keep some juice to sweeten it up if it
turns out okay- like a Traminer or porphyry sauterne- sweetish anyway.
The Pomace Wine was bloody awful- at
less than 10%- into the still!
The juice fermented naturally, with no hints of H2S either. Whether the this
production of so called wine makes it to a bottle- will have to see, its not as
bad as other years (19-3-10)
The wine proceeded to ferment, I put some bentonite in it 18-3-10 to settle the
floaties. It smells like a wine, looks a little bit brown rather than yellow,
and tastes okay. Hopefully there was not too much bentonite.Pinot Noir
Went on to use it at The Ghurk anyway and nearly finished by August- really nice
in all sorts of meals. Glad it went that way now.
Shiraz
Will use a commercial yeast this time-
Maybe have to use a insect
spray more often next year- the dried husks are either insect derived or sun
burnt- or need to keep up water, not just think that the rain fall will help.
And not reduce the canopy so much- in fact try to get it up and evenly spread
higher over the whole lot- too much sunlight on the 'north side' vines.
Citronella to keep bees and wasps away?
By July, seems to be okay.
Harry Hof gave me a few kilos of his best shiraz, so that was crushed and added
on 7th too.
Got 16 brix, or 1010sg, not adding sugar.
What a vigorous fermentation! Still going Saturday
Ended up with 35 litres or nearly 3-1/2 dozen potentially
Ended up with 45 bottles, and some top up for the 2011 backyard shiraz after it
was racked and egg white treated. There is a little tartness/bitterness but the
PMS will fix that I think.
2010
Crop Production
Foxy Grapes- 22 kg, 11 l juice after "first pressing",
10 litres
Pinot Gris about 30-40kg, 25 litres, went to crap as not cared for carefully
enough, so-
5 litres spirit!
Pinot Noir 2kg, 1.25l -
I bottle Vinegar
Shiraz 8kg- 7.5l must.-
Longford Shiraz-
7St10lbs,
about 45l must-
45 bottles!
-irrigation- 2 l / plant, 25 plants- 3 times a week-
150l/week
Fertiliser- 30 and compost
wires and netting- 5 and 40
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Other native oil products were Bundy types- which are always noice.
