Adventures of Oenophiles

Though we certainly aren't wine connoisseurs, we have been learning a lot about the wine industry, especially how difficult it is to start your own vineyard! Complications have included fruit loss to kangaroos, birds, and bushfires (their plants didn't burn, but smoke can wreak havoc with the fruit's flavor!), vine damage from gale winds, and heaps of other hurdles. 


As a start-up, they still don't make or bottle their own wine in-house.  Thus, after harvest in the fall (Feb-April, depending on the grape), the fruit is sent off to Mel, their wine-maker. Last Friday we had the chance to actually go an bottle their Shiraz, which they have been waiting on for ages! This was their first vintage, so it was pretty exciting to get to taste it right as it was ready! They were worried that the smoke from the bushfires would be detectable in the wine, but luckily, due to some measures taken on Mel's part, the wine came out really well - I think it might have turned me on to Shiraz for life.


Mel's workshed was filled with vats and crates of wine, the bottling and capping machine, and the large machine that tumbled the sparkling wine. It was all pretty awesome. We did have to feed the bottles into the machine and box them up, but luckily the novelty never really wore off. 


This Friday - hopefully we'll be back to taste their Pinot Gris (historically my favorite wine, so I am very excited!)


PS - thanks to Carlyn's mom for "oenophiles" - love a good vocab word!