Crush Stained Jeans

In the recent issue of Wine Business Monthly Jake Lorenzo article called Living Crush (I love reading his column everymonth) describes crush the real way. "They think that winemakers live an idyllic life, one with little stress; full of fine dining, expensive wines and interesting dinner guests. They just have no idea the work involved. Jake Lorenzo is starting 34th harvest. By the time it is over my back will hurt and my knuckles will be scabbed over. My fingers will be split and my hands blackened. I will have spent hours sterilizing hoses, cleaning tanks, shoveling pomice, punching down, setting up pumps and filling and racking barrles. I'll have been stung by yellow jackets two or three times, downed several cases of beer and gotten cramps in my calf muscles from trying to pull off my boots. Whole sets of clothes will need to be thrown away. I will pass out most evenings and wake up still exhausted. That is what crush is about. That's why I love it" http://www.winebusiness.com/

Crush is an exciting time, grapes varieties can come in one on top of the other and it can require some really long days. But that is just one portion of the vintage process that makes crush a 14 week stint of no days off. Now the crusher distemmer has been put away for a couple of weeks The incredibly important time in the cellar begins immediately after the grapes have been crushed. Following the fermentations through to their completion, knowing when to press the reds and beginning your barrel program. For us at Dunham & Froese our winemaker Kirby is at the cellar everyday during crushing and pressing. He does punchdowns, pump overs, fermentation and pressing. If a wine is sluggish while moving through ferment you have to be on top of it right away. Or if your wine is heating up way to fast then you again have to be there to adjust the temperature. This time of the year in our cellar it is all about being focused and in-sync with the changes in each wine as it progresses. Because we create two reserve blend using 9 varietals which don't move through fermentation identically things can be even more complicated and require tons more planning and brain power.

Photo Caption (Kirby shoveling skins into press)

But today is the last pressing of our reds and Kirby celebrates his 16th completed vintage. Through all his years of experience he knows that after almost 14 weeks without a day off he is going to be bone tired but in the same breath very excited about the wines that are a result of all his passionate attention.
So as our 2009 vintage winds down we celebrate by ceremoniously throwing out another pair of his crush stained jeans.

Vintage 2009 is it really a perfect one... again?

Are you tired of hearing how this has been another perfect season? Me too. And that answer is really kinda boring and doesn't really express the work that goes on this time of year. In truth though we had a surprisingly super summer temperatures after a brutally cold and long winter. This summer our vineyard was hit pretty hard with a little pest called leafhopper. After talking to a conventional vineyard manager north of us they too had to struggle with a vibrant leaf hopper. Everything always comes in cycles... this year it was leafhopper.
I know you might have heard that most wineries are done harvest except for icewine and that really isn't the case. Most smaller boutique wineries stagger their harvest based on the ripeness in the vineyard but also in the juggling act that goes on in the cellar. People like us have limited tanks, oak barrels, pumps hoses and presses. So it is a bit of a circus ballet in the cellar for our winemaker Kirby Froese. But he is an expert at timing things so that he can transfer ferments out of tank into barrel just when the next varietal is coming off the vine. But this past week has thrown the proverbial wrench into the system.
We have seen nightly temps drop from -4 and beyond. So this freezes the leaves they fall off and the vine stops pouring flavours/nutrients into the grape and unless you are waiting to produce icewine (which we are not) you need to do a mad dash to the finish line of harvest and pick like crazy!
So while other people maybe reporting to you this is a "perfect season" think of us doing crazy hours on the crush pad for the next few weeks, while we squeeze every last square inch of space from our cellar doing the winemakers juggle.
Remember the wine industry is based on farming...when have you heard a farmer ever say it was a perfect season?

1st day of crush 2009 this is the first bin of organic pinot blanc

The first day of crush is always a bit hairy.
We pull out equipment that we only use once a year and even after maintenance well anything can happen. We have two basket presses that have an inflatable bladder inside and we attach an air compressor that we ever so gently fill them with which pushes the skins to the side and squeezes the juice. Hooking them up we had coupling problems something about male female...I wasn't really paying attention. And once Kirby & Gene figured it out we filled both presses but one still didn't seem to be filling with at the same speed, which just means it takes longer to press a load. So we will be taking a closer look at it tomorrow when we set up.
After we were done Gene built a hopper to help direct the grapes into the conveyor and Kirby crunched some numbers and I cleaned the crusher and crush pad. Kirby and I arrived home at around 8ish.

Here in this video ( I told them no swearing till I finished the video) Gene is loading the conveyor and Kirby is manning the pump from the crusher to the press, I'm manning the pump from the press to the tanks and taking the video. Always the multitask-er...



We will all be up early to do it all again tomorrow and for the next few weeks straight. If you are in the valley stop by, wineshop is open too

Diverse and Layered Suite of Life in the Vineyard

As I update this blog I am sitting in a coffee shop with a 16oz latte writing my to-do list for the fall. This fall will be our very first all estate vintage grown from organic and biodynamic managed vineyards on Covert Farms. To say it has been an easy season in the vineyard would be disrespectful of Gene hours hours of tending. The winter was harsh on the vine here in the Okanagan. And many of our neighbours below us in the valley had acres lost and had to replant this spring. We had a bit of mortality but really nothing to complain about.

As our vines moved through the seasons this year they have struggled with leafhopper.

Leafhopper will remove the contents of leaf cells, leaving behind empty cells that appear as pale yellow spots. If populations are high, the entire leaf may be pale yellow or white. Loss of leaf efficiency and leaves dropping off the plant can occur when leafhopper densities are extremely high. The adults are very active, jumping, flying or running when disturbed. The conventional method of control is to spray a chemical to kill them. The trouble with that is the chemical that is sprayed also kills all the beneficial insects that live on or near the vine. Which might keep Leafhopper under control through that summer but you will most likely have to continue the chemical spraying each year. We here at Dunham & Froese like to look at a bigger picture. What if we if we are patient enough and could get nature to do the work for us. There is a wasp that like a science fiction novel parasites the egg of the leafhopper. The Anagrus Wasp which is much smaller than the wasps we are familiar with and it is attracted to an area that has blackberry bushes. So Gene early this spring planted black berry bushes in our south east vineyard. But those bushes will take a couple of years to establish themselves. In the meantime to keep the leafhopper population at bay he sprayed an organic white clay on the vines that suffocates the leafhopper. In addition to these two things Gene peppered the vineyard with Green Lace Wing Eggs (you can see the video on our homepage on the website). They are voracious feeders on leafhoppers. Gene’s method continues to follow our overall philosophy in that is about working with what is interconnected in the vineyard and by introducing these beneficial over time it will naturally take care of the vines pests.

Because we practice organic and biodynamic methods our vineyards do not look like the perfect "front yard coiffed " vineyard. Between the vines and under them grow an array of ground cover crops that invite insects and an environment that works with the vine to help it establish itself long term. It is a diverse and layered suite of life. To our eyes it is beautiful. We invite to come check it out yourself.

road trip

August 19th we will be doing the Salt Series at Salt Tasting Room ~ Blood Alley, Gastown (604) 633-1912 This event will take place along the backdrop of Salt Cellar's 1000–bottle wine cooler, in an intimate setting that will include hand-crafted charcuterie from local producers such as J, N & Z Deli, Moccia's, and Oyama Sausage Company, along with artisan cheeses from Neal's Yard (UK), Italy, Spain, and British Columbia. We are stoked to be joining Kurt and his crew at Salt for this great event!
Tickets are $65, which includes all food, wines, taxes and gratuity! Contact Salt directly to get your tickets. www.salttastingroom.com

Friday, Aug. 21st We will make our Whistler debut. In a walkabout style, Dunham & Froese's winemaker Kirby Froese will showcase the wineries new releases, each paired with the culinary creations of Vincent Stefano, Executive Chef, Fairmont Chateau Whistler.

Please join us at Fairmont Chateau Whistler and Blackcomb Liquor for an evening of the hottest reds, and the coolest whites beginning at 6:30 pm at The Wine Room,
Fairmont Chateau Whistler.

Date: Friday, Aug. 21, 2009
Time: 6:30 pm start
Fairmont Chateau Whistler Wine Room
Price: $35 pp (exclusive of taxes and gratuity)
RSVP: michael@blackcombliquorstore.com by Aug. 17, 2009

Vino Camp Vancouver

VINOCAMP TRACK: Kirby is on later in the afternoon I will be tweeting and bloggin.

I'll be tweeting and posting so check in :-)

12:30 – 1:10 Keynote: “The Wine Soaked Landscape: an international perspective on the allure of wine country” by Dr. Donna Senese, UBC Okanagan

1:30:-2:10 “Old versus Young” by Sid Cross, Western Living & Daenna van Mulligan, Wine Diva

*2:10 – 2:30*: BREAK – lightning talk: Yours? (details below)

2:30:-3:10 “Cool, Single & Sustainable” by Mark Davidson, Wine Australia & Ingo Grady, Mission Hill Family Estate

*3:10 – 3:30* BREAK – lightning talk: Yours? (details below)

3:30-4:10: “The Glass as a Messenger” by David Sanders, Riedel

4:10 – 4:30 BREAK – Stag Hollow Twitter tasting with Dwight Sick of Stag’s Hollow. Live wine tasting at VinoCamp and in wine shops across B.C. and Alberta. Follow along at @Stagshollow

4:30-5:10 Romancing the Vine: The trials and tribulations in owning a boutique winery by Patrick Murphy of Vista D’oro, Mike Raffan of Township 7, and Kirby Froese of Dunham & Froese, moderated by Shelley Boettcher of Calgary Herald

Wile on the crush pad July 19 2009

Dog days of summer what more can I say....

Celebrities and Wine Festivals

I love movies. Always have, ever since my mom dropped myself and my siblings off at a movie theatre with our bags of penny candy and bottle of pop. Except for a stint during adolescence when I had a Shaun Cassidy poster up on my wall I wouldn't call myself a star struck person. But last night I poured at the first Osoyoos Celebrity Wine Festival. David Cubitt from the TV show Medium came up to my table and I know my eyes went as big a saucers just by his reaction which was a big smile. He knew I knew who he was. He is way more handsome in person by the way. A really lovely lady was with him but I'm not certain it was his wife but I am certain both really loved our 2008 Rose. As a matter of fact they came back a couple of times for it and at the end of the event I was able to catch his eye and give him a couple of bottles.

Actors go to many auditions to get even one little part in something. Most great actors like David Cubitt have paid their dues to get to the success they are having now.

Like an actor we have good experiences and not so good ones while auditioning on the stage of wine festivals. There are so many subjective tastes when it come to wine that some might fall in love with who you are and thus you get the part. Others are looking for say a Gewürztraminer which we don't make and the winery just next to you is pouring a great one. Some tasters are more inclined to a certain style of wine maybe more sweet and we at Dunham & Froese swing far to the dry side, even in our Rose. Like auditions for an actor each wine festival and event just gives us one more chance to introduce ourselves to the public. As Shakespeare so eloquently put it "All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players.

Peter Rabitts Cousins

Today while working in the wineshop. Wile our dog found 3 baby Nuttall's Cottontail rabbits. Wile picked one up in his mouth and once I made him drop it the poor thing was totally stunned. As two siblings went hopping quickly away, all in one motion I scooped this little bunny up in one hand and sent Wile away. The baby bunny sat in the palm of my hand, breathing really heavy and when I put him back on the ground he staggered a bit so I scooped him up again and put him back near the fence so he could recover under a bit of protection while I removed Wile from the scene. I went back to check on him and couldn't find him. There was a piece of the playground equipment leaning up against the wooden fence which was where Wile had started all the commotion so I just pulled it back to see and there was another one all burrowed into the sand and grass. I spent some time looking back along the fence trying to find the injured with no luck. But I did come across the third one. This one was just sitting still in between the slates of the fence. I gently touched is back and he didn't move so I quietly stepped around the front and again he didn't move so I just gently patted him between the ears. And pulled out my cell phone and took a couple of pictures.
Wile came bounding back and with his nose instantly found the the injured one. He didn't touch it this time just stood next to it. So I scooped the bunny up and out of reach of Wile. The bunny didn't squirm and he was looking much better so I went back to the playground lean-too and put him with his sibling. When I returned to the one I had taken the photos of he had hopped away.

Gene and Kirby came back to the wineshop I told them the whole story, I took them over to the playground and lifted the lean-too ...when I said babies I don't think they really knew how small I meant. I have small hands so to say that one fit into my palm means that they were tiny.
When I had taken the photo I should have put my hand next to it but in all the excitement it just didn't dawn on me. But to put it in perspective for size. The space between the slates of the fence where the bunny is sitting, if you put your two fingers together that is about how wide it is.

The Nuttal Cottontail are blue listed here in the Okanagan. They have lost most of their habitat. So it was fantastic to see them on the farm and even so close to the wineshop! Gene is making an effort to set up areas throughout the property that the cottontail will be attracted to. Wood piles that are big in diameter to keep the coyotes out are ideal. I'm hoping after we left that the mother came back and gathered her little crew and took them off to a much safer place.

To learn more about Red and Blue listed species in the Okanagan check out his site http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/okanagan/esd/atlas/atrisk.html

Oh to be judged!

Yesterday I wore out my taste buds as a judge for the Okanagan Spring Wine Festival. (I'm the one on the far left)
I have particapted in tons of tastings but this was my first go at judging. We were broken into groups and each group had different categories to work through. My group judged miscellaneous reds, syrahs, chardonnays, miscellaneous white varietals and then finished with ice wine. I know you are thinking ya ya how hard can it be. But there were over 100 wines just for our group. I was pretty relieved that we didn't judge the Merlots which by the amount of glasses in front of that group probably somewhere around 24 to 36 of them. We took breaks between each set to cleanse our palate and chat about some of the ones we tasted. It is completely blind you have no idea who's wine you are tasting. In the discussion with a few of the other judges in my group we found that we actually had chosen similar wines in the categories.
It is a tiring exercise for the palate and brain waves. Everyone in the room takes this pretty seriously we all being in the industry understand the time, effort and passion that goes into each submission.

So how did I tackle each category. First I swirled and smelled everyone one right after the other and started to group them according to aromas. Then I start tasting the ones that I liked the aromas of the least and again start arranging them in groups according to flavour profile. Once I have narrowed it down to the 5 "top" ones I spend more time swirling smelling tasting and re tasting them. There is tons of spitting happening in this process too. All the wines get a score. Those results are compiled by officials that are overseeing the whole process. The results for the judging will be announced on April 30th in Kelowna and we find out the same time you do who won what. So check out all the info on their website. http://www.owfs.com/ judging info http://www.okanaganwineawards.com/