Harvest Tomorrow

[Sherpa]

The fifteenth  year of growing petit verdot, one of the five Bordeaux grapes.

Looks to be a great year, maybe the best ever.

Chemistry of the crop is perfect, owing to a dry summer, rain at just the right time, and cool nights the past two weeks.

We were awarded a silver medal in the Virginia Governor's Cup this year for our 2017.

I think this year is better; on the vine anyway.

For all, enjoy this time of year as the harvest of the United States comes in.

[Koko]

Go for the gold this year!

[Sherpa]

4 minutes ago, Koko said:

Go for the gold this year!

 

We'll see, but it will take four or five years.

Petit Verdot takes a long time to reach it's rich end, but it's worth it.

With this year's chemistry numbers, I'm going to save a case for ten years and see what happens. 

[KD in CA]

Nice.  Where are your vineyards?

 

 

[Sherpa]

12 minutes ago, KD in CA said:

Nice.  Where are your vineyards?

 

 

 

In the wine world, the Monticello Appellation.

In the geo world, Charlottesville, VA.

[RochesterRob]

4 hours ago, Sherpa said:

The fifteenth  year of growing petit verdot, one of the five Bordeaux grapes.

Looks to be a great year, maybe the best ever.

Chemistry of the crop is perfect, owing to a dry summer, rain at just the right time, and cool nights the past two weeks.

We were awarded a silver medal in the Virginia Governor's Cup this year for our 2017.

I think this year is better; on the vine anyway.

For all, enjoy this time of year as the harvest of the United States comes in.

  Dry summer = abundant sunlight = lots of plant sugar.  Some of the best wines in the Finger Lakes are from such years.  1985. 1988. 1991. etc..

[Ann]

Mmmm wine 

 

 

You will have to share when your favorite is ready for sale, @Sherpa

[Crap Throwing Clavin]

7 hours ago, Sherpa said:

 

In the wine world, the Monticello Appellation.

In the geo world, Charlottesville, VA.

 

I'm out there in a couple of weeks.  Wouldn't mind trying a bottle from your vineyard, if you can point the way.

[Sherpa]

5 hours ago, Crap Throwing Monkey said:

 

I'm out there in a couple of weeks.  Wouldn't mind trying a bottle from your vineyard, if you can point the way.

 

https://www.chestnutoakvineyard.com/

 

That is the winery we sold to at that time.

Select the "Shop Wines" link.

Scroll down to the sixth selection which is "Ascension 2017 Petit Verdot."

That is ours.

The winery owners are close personal friends. 

They are open Fri/Sat/Sun, 12-4.

My vineyard is about 1/2 mile south of their vineyard/winery.

[Koko]

6 hours ago, Sherpa said:

 

https://www.chestnutoakvineyard.com/

 

That is the winery we sold to at that time.

Select the "Shop Wines" link.

Scroll down to the sixth selection which is "Ascension 2017 Petit Verdot."

That is ours.

The winery owners are close personal friends. 

They are open Fri/Sat/Sun, 12-4.

My vineyard is about 1/2 mile south of their vineyard/winery.

 

Yikes, the price is doubled to have a bottle shipped.

[Seasons1992]

Good on you, @Sherpa. 

I used to make wine for ten years. We'd get refrigerated semi's in from CA vineyards and process hundreds of thousands of pounds over a few weekends. 

 

I actually made a 100% Petit Verdot one year. It was excellent. Also blended it to slightly soften up Petite Sirah or Zinfandel.

[Sherpa]

2 hours ago, Seasons1992 said:

Good on you, @Sherpa. 

I used to make wine for ten years. We'd get refrigerated semi's in from CA vineyards and process hundreds of thousands of pounds over a few weekends. 

 

I actually made a 100% Petit Verdot one year. It was excellent. Also blended it to slightly soften up Petite Sirah or Zinfandel.

 

We used to save enough grapes to make about 5 gallons for family/friends consumption, slightly less than two cases per year.

We'd do the full Italian thing, women in dresses stomping the grapes, then a big dinner, and my wife would handle the winemaking.

After bottling, which isn't until June, we'd lay them on their corks for at least three years.

I am wondering why you would use petit verdot to "soften up"  petit sirah or zin.

 

Petit Verdot has a high tannin count, owing to its thick skin and thus, high skin to pulp ration.

It is usually used to "beef" up cabernet or merlot.

The two you mentioned are also serious reds, but I haven't seen it used that way.

 

Anyway, it has caught on as a pure varietal, and it works pretty well here.

 

[Ann]

11 hours ago, Sherpa said:

 

https://www.chestnutoakvineyard.com/

 

That is the winery we sold to at that time.

Select the "Shop Wines" link.

Scroll down to the sixth selection which is "Ascension 2017 Petit Verdot."

That is ours.

The winery owners are close personal friends. 

They are open Fri/Sat/Sun, 12-4.

My vineyard is about 1/2 mile south of their vineyard/winery.

@Sherpa what would you compare your wine to?  I don't think I've ever had a wine from Virginia. We drink mostly Italian reds and Finger Lakes reds, with some Napa and Sonoma reds thrown in to mix things up.
 

[Sherpa]

Probably not what you want to hear, but having spent well over a decade producing it, and spending so much time in other wine producing regions, I'll offer my view.

 

First, and I'll take the slings and arrows, I don't ever buy anything from California or France.

California produces some great wines, but having lived in the Napa area, I can't stand the pretentious SoCal money that runs that region.

French wine is simply too thin for me.

It is their taste, and I respect that, but having travelled there for years and bringing a bunch of it back, I never thought it was that good, actually not good enough to haul back.

 

In my view, the best value in reds, and I'm not interested in whites, is from Southern Italy, Portugal and Mendoza, Argentina.

Value being the key word.

I had an agreement set up with a high quality producer from the Maipo Valley in Chile, a high end producer in Mendoza, Argentina, and our stuff, blended and marketed as a three country blend, which would have been fabulous, and easily affordable.

As it turned out , the Chilean guy could not get shipping, which is very complicated.

 

Chile and Argentina have super climates for wine production. Not possible in the US, even Napa/Sonoma.

 

To your point, Virginia wine has gotten pretty good over the past four years, and the vineyards are gorgeous.

As a pure value play, it costs a lot more to get it in the bottle than Argentine, Italian or Chilean offerings, so you're going to pay more.

If you're looking to spend a few hours at a vineyard,  having a glass, this is the place.

Late edit.

For white fans, the Virginia Viognier is very good.

It's  a white, but the best.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 16, 2021 by Sherpa

[Crap Throwing Clavin]

1 hour ago, Sherpa said:

Probably not what you want to hear, but having spent well over a decade producing it, and spending so much time in other wine producing regions, I'll offer my view.

 

First, and I'll take the slings and arrows, I don't ever buy anything from California or France.

California produces some great wines, but having lived in the Napa area, I can't stand the pretentious SoCal money that runs that region.

French wine is simply too thin for me.

It is their taste, and I respect that, but having travelled there for years and bringing a bunch of it back, I never thought it was that good, actually not good enough to haul back.

 

In my view, the best value in reds, and I'm not interested in whites, is from Southern Italy, Portugal and Mendoza, Argentina.

Value being the key word.

I had an agreement set up with a high quality producer from the Maipo Valley in Chile, a high end producer in Mendoza, Argentina, and our stuff, blended and marketed as a three country blend, which would have been fabulous, and easily affordable.

As it turned out , the Chilean guy could not get shipping, which is very complicated.

 

Chile and Argentina have super climates for wine production. Not possible in the US, even Napa/Sonoma.

 

To your point, Virginia wine has gotten pretty good over the past four years, and the vineyards are gorgeous.

As a pure value play, it costs a lot more to get it in the bottle than Argentine, Italian or Chilean offerings, so you're going to pay more.

If you're looking to spend a few hours at a vineyard,  having a glass, this is the place.

Late edit.

For white fans, the Virginia Viognier is very good.

It's  a white, but the best.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Agree with most all of that.  Though I never thought too highly of Chilean wines - good table wines, but nothing terribly special.  Although it's been quite a while since I had one.

 

Always thought CA wines were good, but overpriced from CA vintners being too full of themselves.  

 

It's surprising how good VA wines have gotten over the past decade.  Familiar with Cross Keys, Barboursville, and Prince Michel, all of which I understand had vintages served in the Obama White House.

[Taro T]

Not much of a wine guy, so have no clue what you all mean by stiffening other wines.  If it means pinot verdot is very dry, sign me up.

 

Like said above, don't drink much wine, but the little bit that I do tends to be dry reds such as malbec.

 

Cool that you make wine & cooler that you've won an award.  Congrats.

 

 

[Sherpa]

10 minutes ago, Crap Throwing Monkey said:

 

Agree with most all of that.  Though I never thought too highly of Chilean wines - good table wines, but nothing terribly special.  Although it's been quite a while since I had one.

 

Always thought CA wines were good, but overpriced from CA vintners being too full of themselves.  

 

It's surprising how good VA wines have gotten over the past decade.  Familiar with Cross Keys, Barboursville, and Prince Michel, all of which I understand had vintages served in the Obama White House.

 

You are well informed, at least in my view.

Chilean wines are not representative of their weather advantage.

The Cabernets are good, but they are generally table wines.

 

I am very familiar with the Virginia operations you mentioned.

Prince Michel I wouldn't touch.

 

Barboursville is just up the road from me. Too big an operation to be enjoyable.

I know Fernando Franco, the viticulturist, and Luca Paschina, the guy who runs the place.

Great guy.

When I first considered doing a vineyard, they came down, looked at my property, and promised me they would buy anything I grew, as I was just south of them.

Three years later, when I was ready for my first commercial harvest, they told me they would only buy what they grew.

I had no problem selling my grapes to other wineries.

 

If you're ever in this area, I can recommend better.

 

[Sherpa]

17 minutes ago, Taro T said:

Like said above, don't drink much wine, but the little bit that I do tends to be dry reds such as malbec.

 

 

Malbec is OK, but it isn't as complex as others.

Kind of bland.

The good thing about it is that it tastes pretty good at a young age.

The bad thing is that is doesn't get better with age.

Kind of like a teenager.

 

Big Argentine wine. 

Their Cabernets are much better.

[Ann]

Different strokes for different folks. As always, the best wine is the one you enjoy. 

In the past, if I wanted cheapie wine it would be Chilean. 
I have yet to find a Spanish wine I enjoy. I use the Riojas we have for Spanish style Sangria.  
Australian wines really do not do it for me. 

 

[mead107]

I’m waiting on my wine from Virginia.