The End Of Apple Season

The apples are nearly gone from all the trees. A few tenacious pommes remain here and there, but they're mostly gone. These photos are from out in the vineyard. In our yard, I've been working on getting the fallen apples up off the ground and into the compost piles. I'm almost done.

A single apple hangs from its tree in the vineyard; our house is on the right.

This year we're trying something new. We have so many apples that they actually won't fit in the normal compost pile. We started a second pile just for apples. But that, too, is too big to take any more. So the last apples are going directly onto the garden plots for the winter.

In the vineyard, the fallen apples just lay there until they're eaten by wildlife or decompose.

We covered the bare garden plots with a leaf layer for the winter to help keep the weeds down. Next spring the decomposing leaves will get tilled into the soil. And now we've added decomposing apples to the mix. We'll see how it goes.

From now until next fall, if I want apples I'll have to buy them.

Pyracantha Or Cotoneaster?

It appears we have a little bit of both. Well, not us, but neighbors of ours. One has the plant with red berries while another has the plant with the orange berries. I assumed both were pyracantha.

I think this is pyracantha; beautiful in orange.

However, on closer inspection, it appears that they are not the same plant. The pyracantha has larger leaves that are serrated, and the plant is covered in thorns. The cotoneaster, on the other hand, has smaller, smooth-edged leaves and no thorns. If you enlarge these photos (by clicking on them), you can see the differences pretty clearly.

I believe this is cotoneaster; fiery in red.

After looking at my photos, I can see the difference. It just goes to show you, taking time to stop and look at things closely, challenging your assumptions, and doing a little research, can have interesting results. Of course, there's always the possibility that I'm completely wrong (and I invite you to please let me know if I've tripped up).

Whatever did we do before personal computers and the internet? I know. Libraries.

Ode To November

Well, I took these photos last week, so I can't really call them December pictures. Here's what the vineyard is looking like these days. Not a lot of activity out there, but I do see people here and there working on replacing posts and pruning.

A typical fall view in the vineyard.

November was very wet and windy. Since we really need the rain, nobody is complaining, and the temperatures have been pretty darned mild. But now that it's December, I keep thinking it should be getting cold.

Bare vines waiting to be pruned.

January is normally our coldest month, but December and February are close seconds. During these three months the vine pruning will pick up and by the end of February the vineyard will be neat and tidy, ready for the spring growth.

Threatening sky.

Some of the growers burn their prunings as they go. Others line the clippings neatly in between the rows. Once the pruning is done they drive a tractor through with a mulcher attached. Callie will be bringing home dead vine trunks all during the winter.

Periodic Puppy Pics

Today is December first. In one month it will 2010. That date used to seem way off in the future. The. Future. It was even the name of the movie that was the sequel to 2001: A Space Odyssey. The sequel! Here's a shot of Callie in the vineyard while I try to wrap (I typed "warp" first) my brain around this fleeting time thing.

Callie on the prowl in the vineyard.

2001 was made in 1968. 2010 was made in 1984. 1984 was made in the same year as 2010: 1984. The Future is now. Or was it?

Lunatique

Under the influence of the moon, a little crazy. That's the definition of lunatique in the Petit Robert. And I learned this definition because of the signs I saw many years ago on Parisian doorways: chien lunatique.

The moon last Friday evening, seen from out in the vineyard.

It's the French version of "beware of dog." I suppose it's because you can't predict the behavior of a dog that's under the influence of the moon, so you had better watch out. Except most of the time the dog in question was a little tiny fur ball, hardly capable of anything more than a bit of aggressive yipping.

But I do remember, too, seeing many huge dogs in Paris. And knowing how small Parisian apartments can be, I was always amazed that Parisians would own the likes of German Shepherds, Rottweilers, and even the occasional Saint Bernard.

I suppose our Callie is a bit lunatique, but in a good way. She likes to jump up on visitors and lavish them with kisses. And there's no sign outside our house; consider yourself warned.

Saint James Church

So, back to Vermont. I showed you earlier that stained glass window. Now I'll show you the church it's from.

St. James church, Arlington, Vermont.

It looks like a very typical church for this area. I saw a several with the same four points on the steeple as we drove around. I have no idea what style this is, so if any of you know anything about it, I'd appreciate learning.

The church's front door.

The church had a graveyard right outside. The old stones were pretty and the grounds looked well tended. I didn't walk in to look at dates or anything, so I don't know how old they are. I'll bet some are from the eighteenth century.

Inside the church.

This was our first stop in Vermont and I think we spent about fifteen minutes walking around looking. After that we drove up to Manchester. It was mid-day and we were feeling hungry, so Lorraine suggested a spot she knew for lunch.

The cemetery.

A Few Holiday Shots

Another Thanksgiving Day has come and gone. Where do the years go? If you celebrated the day, I hope you had a good one. We certainly did.

A holiday gift basket with wine, pâté from the Dordogne, and freshly picked cèpes (mushrooms).

We had friends S. and U. over for our traditional T-Day leg of lamb. You can read about our lamb tradition here and see photos of the leg before it was roasted. We asked our friends to bring their dogs along for the day. Callie had a great time hanging with Mr. Moe (a yellow labrador) and Bambou (a collie/shepherd mix).

Our guests S. and U. just before the lamb is served.

Lunch began with apéritifs: kirs royales made with sparkling Vouvray and a cassis liqueur. The cassis was special because it was home made. I took the berries from our bush out back this past summer and macerated them in a sugar syrup and alcohol mix for a few months. We pretty much drank all of that with two bottles of the sparkling stuff.

The roasted leg of lamb. Yum.

Along with the kirs we ate smoked trout rolls stuffed with céleri remoulade (we've done this before and we really like it) and bacon-wrapped prunes. Tasty!

We served the lamb with its pan drippings and dijon mustard. Along with that we had flageolets (beans) and glazed carrots. Some of us had a cheese course, then we had a dessert of pumpkin pie that I had made on Wednesday served with some lightly whipped cream.

The wines were varied in age and style. We started with a 2002 Saint-Estèphe (Bordeaux), moved on to a 2008 Bergerac, and then to a local Touraine Primeur (2009) from right across the river.

I got some photos early on, but as the day progressed the camera got forgotten. So I have no photos of our dessert and none of the dogs! I did manage to call home and exchange Thanksgiving greetings with friends and family, and I'm sure I sounded quite festive on the phone.