« Don’t forget the tooth | Main | How Time Flies »
2010 Crush at CasaAnnett Winery
By miranda | September 15, 2010
In it’s third year of production, CasaAnnett Winery had it’s biggest crush yet, so much so that we had to call in the troops to help out. Â Sunday, September 12th (beautiful Kim’s birthday) we invited a few of our favourite people over for an evening of de-stemming. Â In exchange for their labours, the lucky few will be presented with some of the final product, for which we have high hopes of drinkability (for those assistants under the age of majority, you will get to watch your parents enjoy the wine). Â This year’s addition to our cellar will include two carboys of Zinfandel, fermented with different yeasts as an experiment. Â We also plan on making a demijohn of a Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot blend. Â This year we were much better prepared for the harvest season and reserved our grapes ahead of time. Â We picked them up right away and there was an obvious quality difference between this year’s offerings and the past two years, when we basically got what was left after others had had their pick. Â The Cab and Merlot grapes in particular were of good quality and ripeness.
We’re going to be bottling our wine from last year sometime this week, and tasting notes will be updated as we test it. Â Every year we learn a little bit more, and this year in particular we got a few great tips from two wonderful sources, Lawrence at Herder Winery in Keremeos and the ladies at Bosa Grape in Burnaby. Â With these insights and Harry and my construction of a lab bench in the basement, we have really transformed the wine-making experience here at CasaAnnett, bringing it to the next level (whatever level that may be). Â Monday as I was testing and measuring and weighing and buretting and pipetting in the lab, I was reminded of how much I like chemistry. Â It’s been years since my Bachelor of Science was completed and all that wonderful knowledge has been laying (for the most part) dormant in my brain. Â Monday night I flexed those old neural pathways, and it really felt great. Â Harry’s suggestion that we build the lab area in the basement was an excellent one, and even after only two days’ use, it has already been worth it. Â Also, it was a construction and organization project that made use of some of our new skills as home renovators: Â electrical, drywalling, and cabinet-making.
With all of this, I’m feeling better than I have been, even though a bone-tiredness seems to have set in on me. Â Thanks again to those whom we asked for help, it made for a great day, and many hands did indeed make light work. Â (Pictures are up in the gallery)
Topics: Renovation, Wine | No Comments »