Last Tuesday, Caroline and I took a day off to visit Napa, check out the grapes, and pick up my new French oak barrel from Demptos Napa Cooperage.
We took these pictures at Chimney Rock Winery in the Stag's Leap District. We walked through their winery and barrel aging room, watched a barrel get topped up, and tasted the sweet grapes in the vineyard. They make fantastic Cabs at this winery and use some unique methods for fermenting and pressing (they don't press). But that's for another blog. In short, theirs is the first and only wine club we've ever joined.
Napa wineries have been harvesting grapes of many varieties for weeks, but Cabernet is a later-ripening grape so it continues to mature on the vines. It's nearly ready though! I got the call from the grower this weekend to say he's harvesting the Cabernet this week! So I'll drive up early Thursday morning (Oct 20) to pick up 500+ pounds of grapes. Then begins a long day of destemming, crushing, preparing yeast, and kicking off fermentation. More on the fine details as I go. Oh man - I can't sleep!
~Dave Sienknecht
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