My last blog was on September 29. Sorry for the lapse in posting, but I am going to blame it on writer’s block and too much everyday work, not laziness.

Fact is, between September 30th and October 12th, we made thirty-eight picks totalling 175 tons of grapes (4,200 cases). If you do the math, that works out to an average harvest of 4.6 tons per pick. Those thirty-eight picks went to twenty-two different wineries. Now I am not trying to bore you with a lot of numbers, just trying to show you the artisanal approach to our work.

Yes, we have been in tough economic times, but did you know wine sales will grow slightly this year? That is the good news. The bad news is, sales have grown a lot for the giant corporations doing millions of cases while sales for the artisan, craftsman, small family owned wineries have been going south (for most). These family owned wineries are our staple business.

We do grow and harvest some grapes for the big guys such as Rosenblum (Diageo) and Ravenswood (Constellation) but they represent less than 5% of our business. The people we work with at these two giants of the industry are professional, enjoyable folks to work with, but they don’t represent “our normal client”.

Our client is personally involved in making the wine, hands on with the marketing and sales, working diligently in all phases of the business to insure their winery’s success. They are, for the most part, the modern day Jeffersonian farmer. Just for reference, Thomas Jefferson wrote, “Those who labor in the earth are the chosen people of God”. That is a strong statement and I wouldn’t go that far, but my clients are really, really good people.

Maybe it is a dream, unsustainble in today’s world of globalized economies, markets, and cultures, but you have to love and respect the effort these small vineyard owners and winemakers put forth. So, for my part, I will continue to focuss our efforts toward insuring the success of the small entrepreneurial producer over the large corporation.

Highlights of the Last Two Weeks:

We picked the Sanglier Cellars Syrah from Kemp Vineyard. This vineyard is visually stunning. When you drive up to the gate nothing stands out. As you drive through the gate you crest the ridgeline and see this sweeping panoramic view of a terraced vineyard falling gracefully down the hillside. The morning we picked, the vines were shrouded in fog. The vineyard seemed to be floating in the clouds.

With that said, the fruit turned out to be as ethereal as the scenery. Perfect clusters, slightly dimpled and bursting with blueberry and raspberry flavors. We picked at the peak of flavor, target sugars, and acidity. If this wine is anything less than stellar….we screwed it up in the winery.

Lowlight of the Last Two Weeks:

Pounding rain. Nearly 3″ on the 13th. We still have 100 tons of grapes on the vine. We will know in the next few days if some or all of these grapes will make to the winery. The risk of farming is at hand and it is pushing all the air out of the room.

On a Happier Note:

The weather has given us a break and we will have the time to celebrate a birthday……mine. Normally, harvest prevents a night out, but not this year.

Melissa is Cooking: Braised Pork Shoulder with Mustard and Capers (From a Pig in Provence, Georgeanne Brennan); Potato Gratin; Heirloom Tomato (last of the season), roasted pepper and mozzarella salad; and chocolate cake.

A few friends will come for dinner and we will share our newly released 2008 Sanglier Cellars Russian River Valley Pinot Noir. Then we will be off to see Lyle Lovett and John Hiatt.

The sun is coming out…….thank you God.