Day 10 - 28th February

Saturday is cellar door tastings day here at Bloodwood. Although we are open by appointment at any time which suits us and you, Saturday seems to be the most popular day for cellar door visits. Just give us a ring (preferably before you are in the cellar door) and we’ll do what we can to find the time to show you a few wines and have a chat.

After yesterday's effort we are a bit doughy today but there are still jobs to do. The Schubert is through the peak of its ferment and so we topped the barrels up to within a couple of litres of capacity. They shouldn’t overflow from here but we’ll keep a close eye on them as the ferment finishes over the next week. Now I know you all realise that inappropriate exposure to air is a no no in our style of wine making but what you see here with Mark pouring a 20 litre bucket of top up wine into the barrel is just fine. The top up wine is fermenting alongside the Schubert so there is no danger of oxidation occurring. In fact, a bit of oxygen and the physical movement of the wine will help keep it happy as it continues to ferment to dryness.

Yesterday was an ideal day for picking grapes. The top temperature was around 25C with an easterly breeze and some cloud cover. Nevertheless, we refrigerate the juice down to 10 C to hold it while it settles out over 36 or so hours. Because all our whites and The Big Men In Tights pink are whole bunch pressed, we can use a lot of energy holding the wine quietly cold while gravity does its job. We use refrigerated glycol and insulated tanks to minimise energy wastage and keep the settling cool in but it makes a difference to the fermentation starting point for each wine.

One of the most important jobs in any winery at vintage is that of cleaner. If you are frightened of water or sticky juice, you are in the wrong profession. After a preliminary hose off, we actually get inside the press with a soft scrubbing brush and gently make sure no grape or juice residue remains for drosophila to acetify. Vinegar is ok in its place, but that place isn’t the press.

Cheers,

Stephen and Rhonda