Notes From the
Vintner
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Welcome
to our column. We hope that you will return to
learn interesting notes on wine, and related
subjects. Wine is a great gift from God to be used
for the enjoyment of man. It is a food, and should
be treated as such. It is meant to lift up the body
and lighten the soul. 01/1/03
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May I wish
you each, a Happy New Year! ! !
Where
does time go? It was only yesterday that I started the
winery...yesterday or 1967!!! Life is too short to drink bad
wine. Life is to be enjoyed; it's not something to be
endured. This last year had good things and very bad things
for me. But what is important is to enjoy the good and
correct the bad. I was told on my birthday…which by the
way was only about a week ago, "May this year reflect the
beauty of your dreams." And the card had a favorite picture
on it that is part of my dreams. So as my birthday card said
to me, I say to you…"May this year reflect the beauty
of your dreams."
And a part
of every dream is vinting great wine. To all winemakers ! !
!
This is the
time to go over past mistakes in how we made our wines. This
is the rest period of the wine cycle. It is time to enjoy
the vintages of the past while praying for the vintages of
the future. Some times it is the little things that cause
the biggest problems. If you do not keep a high enough SO2
level in the wine, it can go bad. It is easy to take for
granted that the wine is in good shape, when instead it
needs attention and care. When it tastes like salad
dressing…it is too late. It is important to catch
problems early, so that corrective measures can be taken.
The wine needs to be checked often, for it is special in
your life. Its maturing is a part of your maturing. Use your
checklist to monitor the wine's aging.
If there is a
problem with the wine, it takes a very special wine maker to
turn the problem around and then remember it as a learning
lesson…never to be repeated. So check for problems with
the wine now, so it will age like the beauty of your dreams.
To fine
wines, the wonderful people who vint them, and those who
enjoy them…a toast.
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