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Grape Harvest Season, by Richard Hewitt, Sommelier |
Harvest 2011
The best thing that can be said about the 2011 Virginia harvest is that it's over. Other words to describe the vintage might include dismal, dark, dank and wet. There will be few- if any- great wines produced. Although some producers, if they were judicious in picking their harvest window and agile in the use of enhancement enzymes, made good wine.
The morose weather set in just as the first whites were ready to be picked and then lingered right into the red wine window causing sour rot, powdery mildew and stunted growth. The many dark, cloudy days did nothing for the grape sugar levels, which seemed to stick a few points below the level that most people were hoping for.
There were any number of inventive ruses used to attempt to lift the level of ripeness. Most vintners chapitalized (added sugar) to lift potential alcohol. Some spent days running empty sprayers through the vineyards, blasting the grapes with torrents of air hoping to dry them off. Others rented tobacco barns where grapes were spread out to dry and lose their water content. We will have to wait and see how well these various ventures prove to succeed.
Here at Keswick, we harvested our Courtside Vineyard on a Friday morning just after a brief but intense rain storm. We fortified ourselves with Mimosas (this is Keswick, after all) and then went about drying each grape cluster with pool towels before lugging out near ton of Petit Manseng fruit down to Keswick Vineyards where we would process our treasure. Careful monitoring of the other vineyards we buy fruit from paid off as well. Our Viognier came in just before a rain storm. The Petit Verdot from Mt Juliet was very good, but only after dropping half the crop in the vineyard and then carefully sorting through the rest.
Overall, I think the Keswick Team was one of the few fortunate winemaking endeavors that achieved a fairly solid success in 2011. We will know for certain shortly, when the proof is in the bottle!
Tips for the Perfect Wine Tasting
To experience the true flavor of a wine, you will need to use your senses of sight, smell, touch as well as taste.
- Sight: The best way to look at wine is to tilt the glass and look at it against a white background. The color will vary according to what type of wine it is. As red wine ages, you will see hints of reddish-brown around the edges. White wines become more golden as they age.
- Smell: To determine the aroma of the wine, swirl it vigorously in the glass. As the wine hits the sides of the glass, it releases its fragrance. The aromas can be different depending on how far into the glass your nose goes. At the top of the glass, you will get floral and fruity notes; deeper in the glass, they are richer.
- Touch: Touch is the feel of the wine on your tongue. Some wines have a refreshing zing while others are flat. The ideal touch is a mellow softness—a velvety smoothness on your tongue.
- Taste: The final step. When tasting a wine, take a small amount in your mouth and swirl it around lightly so all your taste buds are exposed. Keep it there for a brief period before swallowing. Consider your impressions of the wine and most importantly, ask questions!
Richard Hewitt
Keswick Hall Sommelier/Winemaker
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