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  • You have to start somewhere

    vines1.jpg

    Don't worry, there are two more in pots (from Wilkies) to keep this one company.

    My chum, the carpenter, and his wife. They who designed & built the honey-comb wine rack.
    Now bottling 20DJs of 2013 red and making room to rack 5 carboys of 2014 red to the DJs where they can wait for another winter.
    Thank goodness for eBay! (local cache of DJs)

  • #2
    Very nice indeed! I do like the pergola look of the trellis. What sort of vines are you planting?
    Steve

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    • #3
      If I put one of those up the wife would immediately stick wisteria up it :{

      http://markblades.com
      Bebere cerevisiae immodoratio
      These days I'm drinking in Charcot's Joint.

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      • #4
        Fools rush in

        I've planted pinot noir, here's today's efforts

        vinerys.jpg

        I'm so fed up with my failures to produce a decent red wine out of a kit - I thought I'd have a chance with the real thing.

        My whites are beautiful - but the reds all taste like they have been made with blackcurrant jam. They have this 'jammy' flavour. I've just had a glass of 9 month old Selection VCdR and it's very smooth, but like jam dissolved in water - not the sweetness - it is dry, but tastes like homebrew.

        I'd love help here if there are any ideas.
        Now bottling 20DJs of 2013 red and making room to rack 5 carboys of 2014 red to the DJs where they can wait for another winter.
        Thank goodness for eBay! (local cache of DJs)

        Comment


        • #5
          Your vines look good, the pergola style trellis should allow you to net them easily if the birds become a nuisance.

          I'm the opposite, my kit whites are lousy and the reds are pretty good. I've got a Selection Estate NZ Sauvignon Blanc (4 months old) and Kenridge Showcase NZ Sauvignon Blanc (7 months) and neither taste of the grape variety and have none of the acid or fruit flavours associated with Marlborough NZ. I just hope that they will make a miraculous transformation after bulk ageing.

          Rob

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          • #6
            Pinot noir grows quite well here in the uk

            i have two vines growing over an archway, made a little wine from it last year, early tastes are promising.....

            should get enough for a gallon this year i think.

            why not come to grapefest and learn how to make good wine from grapes

            there are a few coming from darn sarf, maybe you could hitch a ride

            regards
            bob
            N.G.W.B.J.
            Member of 5 Towns Wine and Beer Makers Society (Yorkshire's newest)
            Wine, mead and beer maker

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            • #7
              I concur with Bob on Grapefest. Last year was my first time at Grapefest and I learnt loads about wine making from grapes and had a great time. About a third of the Trebbiano is gone and the Merlot is rather nice already but is still bulk ageing along with the Sangiovese and a second run blend of the two.

              If you want to get some practice in on processing real grapes whilst your vines are growing then I would thoroughly recommend Grapefest.

              Rob

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              • #8
                Originally posted by lockwood1956 View Post
                why not come to grapefest and learn how to make good wine from grapes

                there are a few coming from darn sarf, maybe you could hitch a ride

                regards
                bob
                Indeed! Infact, there happens to be one coming from Bedfordshire!!!
                "There are 10 types of people who understand Binary; those that do and those that don't.........."

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                • #9
                  Pruning my 3 pinot noir on that trellis or frame in the picture. I came across some interesting videos and amongst a lot of stuff the vinegrower was talking about 7.5lbs per vine (zinfandel) being a perfect target for his purposes and he was haapy to cut back the slow developing clusters to get about 15 bunches for this total weight per vine.

                  Do you guys have targets or observations for what you aim for in terms of total weight or number of bunches per vine?

                  Now a little PS: I've been reading how to cultivate the vine in general gardening books and the bits of CJJ B & others about vines, is there a good book for beginners growing UK grapes for wine anyone would recommend?

                  And a very happy NY to you all.
                  Now bottling 20DJs of 2013 red and making room to rack 5 carboys of 2014 red to the DJs where they can wait for another winter.
                  Thank goodness for eBay! (local cache of DJs)

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Originally posted by ToulouseLePlot View Post
                    Do you guys have targets or observations for what you aim for in terms of total weight or number of bunches per vine?
                    Absolutely. But it's one of those things where each grower has to determine what works best on his plot of land. Leave too many bunches and you'll never get them ripe. Too few, and you won't have enough yield to make wine from.

                    By way of example, I've found that with my Frontenac vines (a US hybrid), I can generally allow no more than 8 lbs per vine - even though the vines will ripen up to 25 lbs. If I overcrop, the resulting wine tastes like a cross between green beans and road tar. But at 8 lbs per vine, the fruit has just the right balance of dark cherry flavors.

                    Unfortunately, it's one of those things for which a book can't provide the exact answer. It will take a few vintages to determine what works best for you.
                    Steve

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                    • #11
                      Thank you Steve, that's good to know. Happy New Year!
                      Now bottling 20DJs of 2013 red and making room to rack 5 carboys of 2014 red to the DJs where they can wait for another winter.
                      Thank goodness for eBay! (local cache of DJs)

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        I have my oldest, a 3 yr old Pinot Noir, showing a lovely load of fruit. I estimate 6kg in delicious looking small cylinders of black fruits all with an agreeable dusty, white bloom.

                        Now I would like some help, some advice, on what is happening today inside that plant.

                        The leaves are beginning to change colour. Is any sugar from the leaves now going into the fruit? We are forecast a drop from warm 15° C to a cool 7 or 8 with 4/5 minimum. Would I be better cutting the bunches and leaving them a last week in the greenhouse - or should I leave them in the forecast cool and rain until the forecast first frost? Should I pick in anticipation of a frost, or the day the frost caught them?

                        I took one berry and it read 18° Brix, it was one of the more ripe looking ones, so possibly most advanced.

                        I know it's a tiny quantity - but it's my first grown grape, I'd like to learn from the whole experience.

                        Thanks for your thoughts!
                        Now bottling 20DJs of 2013 red and making room to rack 5 carboys of 2014 red to the DJs where they can wait for another winter.
                        Thank goodness for eBay! (local cache of DJs)

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          I'm watching what you do TLP, as your just down the road .. see what the guys say...we now have an old freezer ready if we have to pick this weekend. The 10 day forecast for us is not that bad....fingers crossed.

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                          • #14
                            Clear the leaves from around the fruit to allow the sunlight to them (you dont have to necessarily have direct sunlight)

                            the sun will ripen them further, leaving them to hang on the plant is the way to ripen them, they wont ripen further when picked (like some fruit)
                            N.G.W.B.J.
                            Member of 5 Towns Wine and Beer Makers Society (Yorkshire's newest)
                            Wine, mead and beer maker

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                            • #15
                              My pinot still on plant, will try to take pics later in the week
                              N.G.W.B.J.
                              Member of 5 Towns Wine and Beer Makers Society (Yorkshire's newest)
                              Wine, mead and beer maker

                              Comment

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