Did I Mention I Want to Make Wine?
Part 2 in my recent Bonfire Vineyards winemaking adventure in Los Gatos… If you haven’t already, read part 1 here.
Working with the wine press took a minute or so to figure out, but once I got the hang of it, it was almost like reading body language, telling me what to do with its clicks. As the wine flowed into the buckets, it would slow periodically, giving us time to move it to larger containers. When the flow slowed to almost nothing and it became nearly impossible to push the handle, it was time to pull the basket apart and empty its contents. Then we had to repeat the process with the second half of the bin of Cabernet Sauvignon. And once we did those grapes, we went through the same steps with the Zinfandel from Chateau Felice, also in Healdsburg. When everything was in its right place, Ryan went around adding bacteria to each of the containers and covering them. I made labels for each one– designating the grapes, the date, and the press run.
One of the hardest parts of the job, surprisingly, was getting rid of the cake, or the leftover pomace. You’d have to break it apart and push it off into containers, drag them out of the garage, and clean up the dropped bits. (I can’t say that chunks weren’t thrown intentionally, but it didn’t get too out of hand.) The leftovers were quite heavy, though, and it was hard to find enough places to put them. After that, I finally got to do some punch-downs like I’ve been wishing to– for the Syrah from Gilroy. I also cleaned out the bins, which was about what they’d let me do when I tried to help at Fogarty and not much more.
The guys were planning to leave the juice in the containers for a little longer before moving it to barrels. And they pressed the Syrah a few nights later, but I didn’t join in due to work hours and distance. I’d happily help with other parts of the prosess, though, because I really enjoyed myself. It was a long day, some of the work was tedious and/or hard, and my abs were sore the next day from all the pushing. Except I didn’t care. The thrill of being a part of the creation of wine, (and if history repeats itself, it will be good wine) is like putting pen to paper or turning a blank canvas into a work of art. And that speaks to the poet in me who too often only answers in silence. Cheesy, maybe. True, yes.
I hope anyone else out there who’s toyed with the idea of making wine gets the chance to put it into action like I did…
Tags: home_winemaking, making_wine_at_home, wine_pressRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, winemaker to watch
1 opinion for Did I Mention I Want to Make Wine?
BK
Nov 21, 2007 at 2:04 am
This year’s Bonfire effort is ambitious - it has taken a lot of hard work, hustle, and teamwork to keep everything all on track. We were lucky to have several people on hand for this press, but as it was said many times that day and in the days after, Farley took to it like she’d done it all as many times before as the rest of us. Thanks much for sharing this episode of the Bonfire effort with your readers - and thanks for helping us write our poetry!
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