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Health & Fitness

Note to Self: Picking Bins Are Kind'a Important When Picking Grapes

The Guide to Winemaking for the Inexperienced Winemaker Guided by the Experience of the Inexperienced! Chapter II: Planning Only Leads to Disappointment. Art isn't made, It Just Is.

Despite education, despite information being drilled into my head, and despite common sense, I did not have a bin for processing. All I could think of was my fruit coming home, like a newborn baby, needing care and love. Like a newborn baby without a crib. Temporarily (this is NOT recommended) I stored my grapes in a 30 gallon plastic garbage can, cleaned well with Potassium Metabisulfite and followed with a good wipe down of citric acid. These items are available at any brewing supply store, which Livermore has two. The instructions are on the bag and you definitely should invest in a winemaking handbook, the internet is quite handy as well. These are things that you should be familiar with. I beelined straight to my local supply store and invested in a 34 gallon food grade plastic tub. With my grapes warming steadily in the garbage bin, decisions needed to be made. Instead I sat and stared at these two containers. What the heck do I do next? Cold-soak? Whole berry and/or whole cluster ferment? De-stem? Nah, just sitting there seemed the right thing to do. I imagined the process in my mind and just became more confused. Have you ever read one of those books that have alternate endings that you can dictate? It was kind of like that. A river vast and veinous. I finally decided to not decide anything past right now. I chose de-stemming. At this point I only had my Petite Sirah, the Barbera comes later. Added complexity that I hope will rise like the "Walking Dead" from my finished product. For 2 hours my husband and I sat in the cold night swimming through seeds, stems, spiders, mosquitoes, and the sticky purple substance I have come to accept as an indefinite partner of mine. Throughout this process I am working two wineries as well as helping another winemaker out. With our evening closing to an end, a deep pride and serenity (exhaustion) fell over me. The proper, food grade container was filled with perfectly destemmed, micro crushed, clean berries covered with plastic wrap eagerly awaiting my next move. A little dry ice and nominal amount of SO2 ended this step. With the sun arises a new adventure, exlore, discover, and drink fine wine. Petite Sirah, Hand Harvested 10/9/12, 3pm, destemmed 7pm, Temperature 55 degrees, Brix 24.5

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