Showing posts with label Washington wine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Washington wine. Show all posts

Friday, May 30, 2014

Vineyard time lapse

A glimpse into Washington State Vineyards as flowers become berries and berries become wine. 

This Chardonnay cluster is almost in full bloom. Washington hit bloom in record time this year. With record heat units and ideal weather, fruit set happened without a hitch. 


Fast forward a few weeks and those flowers have set into berries. 

And now, we begin the mad dash toward harvest with verasion appearing on theWahluke  Slope in both red and white varieties.  Check out those purple berries!  

Now taking bets on the likely hood of harvest beginning before Labor Day here in Washington 

Thursday, January 16, 2014

ABQ in a weekend

The Husband and I went bowling to end 2013.
Go Cougs!
As alumni of Washington State University, season ticket holders, CAF members, we knew it was our duty to root our Cougs on in Albuquerque as they took on the Colorado State Rams. Seriously it took me like a week to figure out how to spell that so from here out, I will refer to the ABQ!

Have an A1 day!
What does one do in ABQ, I asked myself before we planned our big journey south.  We had to do the Breaking Bad tour, stoping at the building used for A1 Car wash as well as creepily driving by The White's home for the show.  The home is actually someones home, those poor people!

Bloody Mary at Scalo, Marble Brewing Company
Our time in ABQ was also spent wetting our whistle, south west style with some delicious Southwest style chili Bloody Mary's followed by seeking out a local microbrewery.  The Marble Brewery did not disappoint.  With a nice outdoor sitting area complete with picnic tables and bowls for your pooch to cool off and sip from and an open, wood lined interior, we had an enjoyable backdrop for some afternoon vacation beers.  It is always 5 o'clock somewhere, right?  We enjoyed a limited release Pumpkin Cask Dark Ale (pictured above) as well as their IPA and sips of some creamy Oatmeal Stout.




Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Lunch fit for a King

...Or 50 Cellar rats working 12 hour shifts, 7 days a week!

Each week a member of Wahluke Wine Company makes lunch for the whole crew, cellar workers, the maintanace crew, Bottle line, office and viticulture staff and any roaming winemakers.
Lunch for 50, no easy task! And boy can these guys and gals eat!

I chose to prepare America's Test Kitchen Baked Ziti.
Thick noodles, White and red sauce, cheese on top of cheese. I knew they would LOVE this dish.



Cheesy, cheesy goodness. 

6 Trays of Baked Ziti, 4 loafs of garlic bread, 6 bags of salad
4 Hours of preparing
3 Hours of cooking 
30 Minutes of Silence at lunch... Priceless

This was actually my first time preparing Ziti on my own, although I have had this recipe at my parents house many times.  Some may call me crazy, but I like to think I am ambitious.  I followed my father lead and added a little extra Mozzarella, a little more cheese never hurt anyone.  Post Ziti kitchen looks like a red bomb went off but this is totally worth all the dishes!  The Ziti comes together easily.

I like to get as much as I can out of a dish like! When making Baked Ziti for just C and myself, I use two 8 inch square pans and am able to have not only dinner and left overs, but a whole pan in the freezer for unexpected guests or when I don't what to cook!  What is better than that???  

What are your favorite recipies to cook for a crowd?
Have any that were great on a small scale but was an epic fail when done for many mouths?


Monday, October 14, 2013

A Season in IGs

Mid way through October.
I honestly start to get giddy.  The end is in sight.
 Two more weeks of bringing in fruit. Two weeks. 2!

2013 Season has flown by.  I mark each year with the passing of the growth stages in the vineyard.  From the first leaf tip showing to the fruit being harvested and sent to the winery, I find so much beauty in the work I do.


The spring of 2013 was warm!
 Mid 80's in April gave way to rapid shoot growth with bloom much earlier than past years.  
The anticipation!

A hot summer meant an early verasion.
The berries get soft.
The red grapes go from little peas to beautiful red and purple grapes


Then fall comes along.  
Harvest is hard work. 
But twice a week I drive around with our winemaker, tasting berries, making enology decisions while analysing fruit quality and the fermentation it is destine for.