Q: How old are you?

A: I am 11 years old. Turning 12 on July 12th.

Q: How long have you been farming?

A: I have been farming for 3 years.

Q: How did you get into your line of work?

A: I got into my line of work by always coming back here and always offering a helping hand.

Q: Where do you see yourself in five years?

A: I see myself in 5 years working back here (the livestock barn at Benmarl) in the fealds and wine cellar with Mr. Matt and Mr. Glenn

Q: Where do you see yourself in twenty years?

A: I see myself in twenty years maybe becoming the full livestock manager and working in the tasting room.

Q: What is your favorite food and soda pairing?

A: My favorite food is Pena la a vacca and I love orange soda.

Q: What is your favorite cereal, and why?

A: I love ciniman tost crunch and cina bun because it is so sugary and it gives me LOTS of energy.

He had a real tough first night here on earth.  The temperature dropped to 25 degrees F.  and the cold wind from the west was persistent.  We had to prepare some lambing jugs (small pens where the mother and lamb can get acquainted with each other and stay out of the elements).  Fresh straw, a feeding trough, heat lamp and water bucket  filled with a mixture of molasses and water were all in place .  Glenn and I spent the night in the barn making sure that he was fed on a regular basis.

However, despite our best efforts, we found him hypothermic in the early hours of the morning.  With a background of lambing as a child at his family farm, Glenn was quick to take action.  Within minutes we had the chilled lamb in a warm water bath.  95 degrees F. for over an hour.  Slowly, his tongue and then his  lips started to warm up and he gathered some strength to lift his head on his own.  All the while, the mother ewe looked on patiently, with a concerned pace back and forth in the lambing  Jug.  With his lack of strength, we resorted to milking the ewe and bottle feeding for the next few hours.  Drip by drip, he slowly started to eat, and before the end of the day he was back to nursing on his mother.

This was my first experience raising any type of animal from the time it was born.  It’s not easy work .  Long hours, cold nights, and other farm responsibilities wear you out pretty quickly.  And we only have one lamb.  So I tip my hat to all of the farmers out there raising sheep, goats, cattle, pigs, horses, or any other livestock you can think of.  Year after year they are out there doing what needs to be done.

21 Fermentations to be exact comprising of the following grapes:  Chardonnay, Baco Noir Seyval Blanc, DeChaunac, Frontenac, Cabernet Franc, Riesling, Traminette, Catawba, Merlot, Petite Verdot, and Cabernet Sauvignon.  From this, the possibilities will be endless!

The next few weeks will consist of racking some of the wines off of their heavy lees (sediment) and moving some into their new oak homes for the winter months.  Others will spend a short time in stainless steel until we bottle in the spring.  As the wines progress, we will inform you about their condition as well as our new releases and so on.

In the vineyard, we have introduced the sheep into one block of Baco Noir for grazing and the results are quite amazing.  We will be doing more under vine grazing starting in December, after the breading season is finished.  We will be breeding 5 of the ewes in the coming weeks and be lambing in April some time.  Again, we will post more about this at a later date.

In Short, it has been a very fruitful harvest with some beautiful wines that came from it.  It was long and often times trying, but the results have been great, and we look forward to sharing them with you when the time comes.

1 Sugar levels- The sugar levels that you pick your grapes will determine the final alcohol content of the finished wine. Depending on the grape variety, we will look for between 19 and 24% sugar. This will put us into the 10 -13% alcohol by volume range. In years when we don’t get the desired sugar levels, we can chaptalize (add sugar) to bring the alcohol level up.

2 Ph – The ph of a wine is very important in both the structure of the wines taste/texture as well as the chemical and micro bilstability of the wine. Our white wines are usually picked between 2.9 and 3.4 and our reds between 3.4 and 3.7ph. Although it is possible to alter the ph, we prefer to let nature do it when the weather cooperates.

3 Flavor and tannin structure- we taste the grapes on a daily basis to watch the flavors colors and tannins mature. We look for varietal characteristics as well as diminishing vegetal flavors and softening tannins.

4 the last major factor that we look at is the weather. We always want to harvest with perfect conditions, but it is not always the case. So, if there is a storm brewing we might pick early, or if we know that it will be dry, we might let the fruit hang a bit longer to develop longer.

In the end, it is a combination of these things that ultimately determine when we pick and how the grapes will begin their transformation into wine. If you are interested in joining the picking crew this year please contact us for further details and harvest updates.

Matt

Please check in weekly for updates on our progress. We will be updating on what is happening in the cellar, vineyards and outside events as well as food pairings, recipes and everything Benmarl and beyond.