Dry spell offers ray of hope for vintage

You've seen some of the correspondence from Pennsylvania wine grape educator Mark Chien to his many clients regarding issues in the vineyard. His assessment a month ago was that the persistent rain, particularly in the southeast part of the state, could really make this harvest and vintage tough to salvage. His update sounded more optimistic, as the spigot has been tightened, at least over the past couple of weeks.

He writes: "I'm always delighted to have to eat my words even though it happens more requently that I would care to admit. The rain has not abated entirely but certainly lessened around the region recently and that means that grapes are hanging on and, well, sort of ripening. A lot of growers are calling me asking me when they should harvest their grapes. The simple answer is that I can't decide from my office. But there are some pretty standard guidelines for determining grape maturity, even in a crazy vintage like this one. I'm really encouraged by positive reports about fruit quality from Long Island, the Finger Lakes and Virginia.

"Once again, if you minded your viticultural Ps and Qs during the growing season, now is when you reap the rewards. It wasn't easy. Frost could be in our future and that may force some harvest decisions, but as long as the fruit is clean and not being picked clean by birds, deer, raccoons, etc. it will probably benefit from some 'hang time' even if the temperatures are in the 50s. I have heard of beautiful Chambourcin on the vines but they have a way to go. It's still a low sugar year but that doesn't mean it has to be low flavor. The numbers are a bit wacky and wine makers will have their palates and imaginations tested but hopefully the wines will find a good balance by springtime. Just about any maturity index but sugar should be used as a guide this year. pH will hold more sway as an indicator of physiological ripeness. Acids will almost always be on the high side.

"Flavors are the most important wine quality indicators. For reds, skin and seed tannins are critical and in this cool and extended season may be quite well resolved. Other indices such as seed and stem color (brown is better) and the onset of shelling of berries are all signs of ripeness. The best thing to do is to spend time in the vineyard with someone who really understands the nature of ripe fruit and knows how to balance these traits with other conditions that influence a picking decision. Tasting berries is such a refined skill. I always tasted juice samples after an overnight settle for color, texture, acid, sweetness, balance and flavors.

"It really makes a big difference where your vineyard is located this year. Some area got a lot less rain than others this summer. Yields are completely unpredictable. A grower told me about a block of Seyval that normally yields 8 tons and this year they only got one. My sense is that most of the grapes will come off in the next week or two, except on Long Island, of course, where they like to harvest in the morning and then enjoy their Thanksgiving feast.

Locavore program scheduled at Chaddsford on Thursday has to be put on back burner

I had intended to tout the "Lessons from a Locavore" that co-owner/winemaker Eric Miller had planned at Chaddsford Winery on Thursday night, Oct. 15, but learned today that the event has been postponed. Just not enough folks signing up, Lee Miller wrote by e-mail earlier today. She noted that there was a lot of interest in the concept, but it appears the sour economy might have made this event a casualty.

"This is a bad season for classes," she wrote. "Most of ours, and others I hear about, have not been fully subscribed."

Attendees were being charged $40 for the two-hour program. Miller had invited four four local food growers -- fourth-generation mushroom grower Anthony Ianni, Green Meadow Farms' Glen Brendle, cheese producer Sue Miller from Birchrun Hill Farms, and beef-producer Buckrun Farms -- to discuss what they do and pair their foodstuffs with the wines of Chaddsford. It was also to include a plate for each attendee made up by Pace One Restaurant & Country Inn.

Instead, this one gets put off for another time. Still, lots of other activities are scheduled at Chaddsford, featuring everything from reserve tastings to Spiced Apple Sundays during October to a "Taste of Pennsylvania" wine and food dinner at the Tom Quick Inn in Milford, Pa., on Oct. 30. For more on the events planned at Chaddsford, click on the Web site.

Southcentral Pa. winery, vineyard both for sale

Been following the progress of a winery for sale in southcentral Pennsylvania, called Seven Valleys. Been up for over a year, with the asking price for the 79-acre lot and boutique winery at $2.3 million. You can find out more on the property at this link.

Meanwhile, Pa. grape educator Mark Chien sent out an e-mail on Monday that another southcentral Pennsylvania property, called the Stewart vineyard in Stewartstown, Pa., is on the market. The asking price for the 22-acre lot, including the vineyards and buildings, is $475,000. Chien noted that the property, located at 14110 Clark Road, "has an excellent
reputation and have been selling grapes to some of the best wineries in the state for many years." Serious inquiries should be directed to Susan Anderson at 410.925.1618.

See more information below.

FOR SALE

22 acres of rolling farmland with an established 5-acre vinifera vineyard, historic 1884 farmhouse in excellent condition, large barn dating to the 1830’s, also in excellent condition, and outbuildings. A nearly 2-acre building lot overlooking the vineyard is included. The vineyard produces some of the premier wine grapes in the state of Pennsylvania.

The property includes 2 lots. “Lot 1” is vineyard, house, barn and outbuildings and is approximately 20 acres. “Lot 5” is the building lot with about 1.45 acres overlooking the vineyard plus .5 acres for driveway access.

Vineyard: Established in 1993 as Stewart Vineyard by Nelson and Susan Anderson Stewart, the vineyard includes a front lot of 3 acres planted as 1.75 acres of Cabernet Franc, and .75 acres each of Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. This vineyard is currently under the operation of Allegro Winery. A rear vineyard of just under 2 acres was planted in 1997 and contains 1 acre of Cabernet Franc, .5 acre of Merlot and .25 acre of Chardonnay. This vineyard is farmed by property owner Susan Anderson. The vineyard is planted on 3309 rootstock at 10x5 spacing. Average annual yield is approximately 12 tons.

House: Built in 1884, this 4 level 1800 square foot home has been fully renovated and well maintained.

Lower level: walkout to backyard patio, family room, historic stone fireplace, laundry room, ½ bath. 1^st level: kitchen , sitting room and dining room, all with original wood floors, and porch.

First level: Kitchen, sitting room dining room, porch

2^nd level: full bath and master bedroom

Top level: In attic – two-room guest room or office. Large closet plus storage space.

General:

· New roof 2009

· Updated septic 2008 and 2009

· Modern electric (circuit breaker box) and plumbing (pvc and copper pipes)

· Well pump installed 2006

· Efficient ETS Heating units in kitchen/sitting room and on lower level

· Nearly all rooms of house renovated – repainted, floors refinished, plaster repaired or replaced, electric updated – since 1997.

· Energy efficient 50 gallon hot water heater

Barn: Historic building dating from establishment of farm in approximately 1830. Beautiful log construction with stone foundation. Lower basement level was winemaking area. Has cement floor with drain, ceiling insulation, electric including 220v. Upper level is divided into 3 areas: office/wine storage area, open equipment central storage area with garage door, and a partitioned 3^rd area which was begun as an apartment unit but not finished.

Attic level of barn has storage on 2 ends, accessed by steps or ladder.

Additional features of property: In addition to the house and barn, the 22 acres includes vineyard, large yard, woods and creek. Also 2 original out-buildings: the original house, dated to the 1830’s still stands on the property and is structurally stable but unoccupied and unfinished. (3 floors of 20x20 ft). Also standing and stable is the smokehouse.

PHOTOS AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST

Regional Wine Week off and running

Before I begin my cycle for the week, let me remind my followers that this is Regional Wine Week, with somewhere around 50 bloggers from around the country writing all week about wines and wineries in their region.

To access their blogs, just click on this link.

For those of you visiting mine for the first time, I use it to introduce folks to the wines, wineries and winemakers of the Pennsylvania-Maryland region, probably 70 or more all told now. And, like a lot of areas, continuing to grow annually in size and scope.

Limoncello, grappa add some spirit to diverse wine list at Fiore Winery

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Some glimpses of the Fiori landscape: clockwise from top, the bottles of grappa for sale at $25/bottle, one of Fiore's stills, and the dining room in the process of being set up for a reception.

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Paid a visit to Fiore Winery and Distillery in Pylesville, Md., on Sunday. It's one of the oldest in the region, dating back to an opening in 1986. It's around 10 miles from the Pennsylvania-Maryland line, easy accessible via several back-woods scenic roads from York and Lancaster to the north and Baltimore to the south. Probably about 20 minutes, give or take a couple, off the Shrewsbury exit of I-83.

My only disappointment was not getting to meet Mike Fiore, the owner/winemaker and someone I've talked to several times on the phone.

Tastings are $2 per person for a flight of six wines, and a vast majority of them were opened. There were a few exceptions: the Prosecco wasn't; neither was the Caronte, a special blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot that's made only in years where the winemaker feels he's had an optimal season. 2007 was as good a season as it gets, and that's the vintage he's selling now for $25.99/bottle, one I brought home and will rest in the cellar for the next 5 to 10 years. Fiore began making and selling limoncello this year, that distinctive chilled Italian liquor that's magic on the tummy after a multi-course meal. He's charging $3 for a taste, partly to bring in some income to purchase a new still. I attached a photo of one of his old stills that sits in the corner of a building that also houses several of his holding tanks on another part of the property.

Fiore -- a member of the Piedmont Wine Trail -- sells more than 25 dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet and sparkling wines in addition to the limoncello and grappa, a far more potent Italian "digestive" elixir.

It grows all of the grapes for its red wines on the property, in addition to Chardonnay grapes that you can see from the driveway that leads to the tasting room. The 2007 vintage of those grapes made an award-winning batch of juice that was recognized as a gold-medal winner and best of class for white wine at the recently announced 2009 Governor's Cup competition.

That black-topped roadway that leads into the winery off Maryland Route 136 was a busy entrance during the middle part of Sunday afternoon, as the third wedding of the weekend at the winery was just wrapping up and heading into Fiore's dining area for the reception.

Lots to see, taste and smell at Logan's View

The Logan's View tasting room is loated at the far end of the farm market. It's a warm, cozy setting back there, away from the bustle in the store. At some point I'm guessing they'll put a table and a few chairs under the hanging light.

Any time of the year is worth a trip to Brown's Orchards & Farm Market in Loganville, Pa., but there's no better time than fall. Pumpkins galore. A full shelf of bagged candy corn. Every possible color you can want in a mum. And apples, loads of em, in the store and in the back, where you can get a great deal on seconds.

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Wasn't sure what to expect from the wines, but they were good. Priced right, in the $15 range. And you have to think that once they bottle their reds next year, that with 22 or more selections of dry and sweet reds and whites plus fruit wine that it will become a one-stop shopping for a lot of folks who pop in there anyway for the fabulous salads, fruits and baked goods.

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It cost $3 for a tasting of five wines. The only twist is that the mix of wines changes each week. Most wineries you can pay for a flight and get whatever you want. Here, you taste the five assigned wines that are offered on a rotation. Yesterday we sampled Traminette, Vidal Blanc, both with 2 percent residual sugar, and a wine called Scheurebe (6 percent residual alcohol) that's made out of a German grape, a cross between the Riesling and Silvaner. Lots of florals and aromas out of the Traminette; the other two provided more sensation on the tongue than the nose. Our server, by the way, was well-versed on the wines and what to pair them with, always a value when you get into a tasting setting.

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We also tried two fruit wines I've never had before: cherry and blueberry. Both were clean, lovely to look at. Not my cup of tea, so to speak, although that cherry was delicioous on top of a couple of chocolates I popped into my mouth, and I wouldn't mind pouring that blueberry wine on a bowl of premium vanilla ice cream. The orchard cherry and strawberry are selling for $12 for a .375 liter bottle, the blueberry for $14 and the wild cherry for $18.
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I'll have to revisit, which we normally do anyway, during a week when some of the drier whites -- Chardonnay, Riesling and Gewurztraminer -- are being poured. Along with selling wine made out of the Scheurebe grape, they also produce another one unique to this area, at least from what I've seen, called Kerner. Logan View's wine list refers to this German grape as a cross of the red grape Trollinger and the white grape Riesling, terming it as one with a "unique flavor and lingering finish" that will bring you back for more. It's residual sugar content is 2 percent.

Italian wine, harvest dinner, scheduled two days apart at Crossing Vineyards and Winery

Agostino Turturro, who will teach Italian Wine for Beginners on Oct. 21.


Still have the remainder of my interview with Crossing Vineyards and Winery's Chris Carroll to post, as well as one with Hauser Estate winemaker Michelle Oakes, who was so gracious with her time a bit earlier this week.

But at this hour I'm taking a short cut and posting info on two events at Crossing Vineyards and Winery in Washington Crossing. My thanks to Rebecca Freeman for the releases.

Wednesday, Oct. 21

Italian Wine for Beginners, Overview of Italy’s wine region, varietals, producers and vintages by Italian-born wine aficionado Agostino Turturro; Oct. 21, 7 p.m., Crossing Vineyards and Winery, 1853 Wrightstown Road, Washington Crossing, Pa. Cost: $35, includes wine sampling and learning materials. Information and registration: 215-493-6500, ext.19, or www.crossingvineyards.com.

Saturday, Oct. 23

Harvest Winemaker’s Dinner, Vintner and co-owner of Crossing Vineyards and Winery will discuss the challenges of a rainy growing season and how to produce award-winning wines during a 5-course gourmet meal with wine pairings; 7:30 p.m., Oct. 23, Crossing Vineyards and Winery, 1853 Wrightstown Road, Washington Crossing, Pa. Cost: $89 plus tax and gratuity; seating limited. Entrée substitutions may be arranged in advance. Information and reservations: 215-493-6500, ext.19 or www.crossingvineyards.com.