Notes From the Vintner 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. 9/01/06 TGIS... thank God it's September. Most of the harvest is in, and I for one is a happy camper. This will be far from one of our best years. But there is next year ! ! ! It is important to rack your wines at the end of fermentation. Do not get busy and put this off. You want to clean up your wine as soon as you can to prevent any spoilage and off taste from anything that may settle out. It is also time to check the SO2 of the wines and make any adjustments needed. It is best to get your wines good and clean before you state aging, bentonite the wines and rack them early. As soon as you can rack them and place them in a clean barrel. The wine needs to be cleaned up before it starts to age… It is also important to keep the wine vessels topped off with wine. Even a small amount of air on the top of the wine can cause you problems. Making wine is like raising kids, there is always something to check on and adjust. Keep a paper on each tank so that you can write notes as to what you have done to the wine in the tank. Now that you have a simple record system, get into the habit of writing down any transaction you make with the tank. It is this record keeping that will aid you in the future to remember what you did and how much you did to the wine in the tank. We think that we can remember what we do to the wine, but many times when you need the information, you have forgotten the information. WRITE IT DOWN… One last item, be sure to taste the wines often…for this is how you know what s going on in the wine. You can not just make the wine and set it back…. You have to know what is going on in the in wine. With that said…shall we go and check on some wines??? Bring you glass. Email The Vintner Robert G Cowie Wine Maker Our Wines Are Sold At These Fine Stores Vintner Notes Archive - 8/01/06 Vintner Notes Archive - 7/01/06 Vintner Notes Archive - 6/01/06 Vintner Notes Archive - 5/01/06 Vintner Notes Archive - 4/01/06 Vintner Notes Archive - 3/01/06 Vintner Notes Archive - 2/01/06 Vintner Notes Archive - 1/01/06 Vintner Notes Archive - 12/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 11/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 10/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 9/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 8/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 7/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 6/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 5/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 4/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 3/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 2/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 1/01/05 Vintner Notes Archive - 12/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 11/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 10/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 9/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 8/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 7/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 6/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 5/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 4/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 3/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 2/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 1/01/04 Vintner Notes Archive - 12/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 11/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 10/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 9/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 8/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 7/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 6/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 5/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 4/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 3/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 2/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 1/01/03 Vintner Notes Archive - 12/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 11/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 10/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 9/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 8/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 7/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 6/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 5/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 4/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 3/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 2/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 1/01/02 Vintner Notes Archive - 12/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 11/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 10/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 9/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 8/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 7/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 6/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 5/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 4/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 3/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 2/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 1/01/01 Vintner Notes Archive - 12/01/00 Vintner Notes Archive - 11/01/00 Vintner Notes Archive - 10/01/00 Vintner Notes Archive - 9/01/00 Vintner Notes Archive - 8/01/00 Vintner Notes Archive - 7/01/00 Vintner Notes Archive - 6/01/00 Vintner Notes Archive - 5/01/00 Vintner Notes Archive - 4/01/00