Sunny days are here again?

According to the weather report we might be due for some sun, that would be excellent and the longer it lasts the better.  Right now it is beautiful outside and warming up nicely.  Sebastian sprayed a ripening agent this morning also in an attempt to urge the grapes on to greater sweetness.  The birds have started arriving, another problem with a later harvest and right now the only grape they are even remotely interested in is the Foch so there is something with sugar out there.  The birds won't eat green fruit and are one kind of indicator of ripeness.

Sebastian on the tractor

Pad filter open and loaded

In the winery we bottled the 2009 Chardonnay and 2009 Marechal Foch.  Both days went well and weren't particularly long.  We have 2 days of 2009 Willamette Valley Pinot noir and a half day of port and 2008 Dunn Forest Pinot noir left for next week.  Yes, we are finally bottling the 2005/2006 port and once we get a label for it you will be able to buy it.  I'll keep you posted.  The 2009 Chardonnay will be out in a few months but the other 2 wines you probably won't see for almost 2 years.  Just imagine them developing in the bottle waiting for you to enjoy.  The pad filter pictured above is at the end of the day.  I opened it so you could see the pads.  The wine only flows through one pad and I can use as many pads and plates as I need to get the job done.  That is always bit of a guess so I usually guess high.  Below we are cleaning the bottler with hot water, it takes about an hour and a half to sterilize the machine in the morning and then another hour to clean it in the evening when we are done.  Mary is cleaning the four jaws that compress the cork in order to get it in the bottle.

Cleaning the bottler

Mary cleaning the corking jaws

If you are looking for something to do this weekend I recommend heading down to the Fall Festival in Corvallis.  The Benton County Wineries Association is trying something new this year.  There will be just one booth and you will be able to taste wines from most of the wineries in the association.  So come down and check out some labels that you might not be as familiar with as well as our own of course.