Thursday, September 03, 2009

The Red And The White

The grapes are maturing out in the vineyard and are looking very appetizing. They actually taste good, but they're not intended for eating. I pick a single grape every now and then just to taste (the grower has told us to taste the grapes anytime, so it's ok). Next year, we may be drinking these very grapes.

This is probably gamay.

I was talking to a friend over the weekend who said he thought the harvest wouldn't start until late September. That sounds about right, but all will depend on the weather in the next few weeks. Some rain is predicted, but not much, so the longer the grapes stay dry and can soak up warm sun during the day, they should do fine.

This looks like chenin.

That's me, talking like I know anything about growing wine grapes. And my friend isn't in the business, either, but he has several cousins in the area that grow grapes.
at

4 comments:

  1. Starman03 September, 2009 21:00

    How does one tell one kind of grape from another?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jim's Loire04 September, 2009 00:54

    Notoriously difficult – for years the Chileans thought they had Merlot but it turned out to be Carmenère.

    Given their indented leaves the black grapes above may be Cabernet Franc.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ur-spo04 September, 2009 05:55

    I am a student of wine, and it was interesting and exciting to see these grapes.
    Ironically, in all my study of wine, I know very little about the French wines other than what I have read in books. Here, they are too expensive to drink. Someday hope to drink real French wine and see what all the talk is about.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Jennifer05 September, 2009 00:53

    Looking ripe!

    ReplyDelete

Tell me what you think!