Five weeks into Crush, two to go.
Five weeks since the first grapes came in, two weeks to go. The last two lots of Cabernet will be harvested this weekend, I’ll have punchdowns for about 9 days, then I can go home. I’ve been living at the winery most of crush, going home every 3 to 4 days to wash my work clothes, check the house plants and garden, pay a few bills. I’m renting winery space from Parma Ridge Vineyards to make my red wines, and I’ve been crashing at the guest apartment on site.

I have explored the local cuisine of Wilder, Homedale, Parma, and Marsing, much to the chagrin of my arteries. The undeniable winner of this private culinary contest is the taco truck in Wilder, of course. As a connoisseur of taco trucks, I knew it would be but I tried all the local sit-down Mexican restaurants, steak and potato bars, and Polar Bear slurp and burps, just in case. The taco wagon’s lengua (beef tongue) tacos are exquisite; tender, just the right amount of seasoning, topped with crisp radishes, onions and cilantro.

Joe joins me to work out here on his days off. It’s the only time we see each other during harvest, but it feels good because we are building this company together. I see my friends when they come out to work with me. I’ve caught a few great meals at my parents house before heading back out to the winery.

I’m excited by the way this crush has gone. The Syrah quality is definitely good and Viognier and Rosé are going to be very pretty wines. The Merlot is still fermenting with lots of sugar left, so its hard to get a read on its character yet. The Cabernet has had several weeks of moderate days and cool nights to mature in flavor. It should be great.

Although the harvest has seemed long, we will be done picking by mid-October, fairly early, but not surprising in the context of August weather that stayed over 100 F for weeks.