Wine Blog

THE VINEYARDS
There is in the soil of the 15,000 acres of vineyards of the Jerez country, lime, clay and sand, but in widely varying proportions, mixed quite differently, and ‘peppered’ in an erratic manner with small quantities of various minerals, the importance of which, as regards the quality of the grapes and of the wine made from them, is considerable. The best Sherries all come from vineyards rich in lime: they are called Albarizas, from albo, white, their soil being chalk white. They are the vineyards upon which the ancient fame of Sherry was built and still stands. Carrascal, Macharnudo, Balbaina and Anina, within a few miles to the north-west and west of Jerez, are the largest and among the best of the Albariza vineyard districts; they are divided among a large number of owners. Nearly two-thirds of all the Sherry-producing vineyards are Albarizas. The vineyards known as Barros (some 21 per cent. of total), are mostly to the south-east of Jerez; their soil contains a higher proportion of clay: it is richer and darker. Others, called Arenas (17 per cent.), are scattered here and there in what might be called sand pockets; they produce more ‘grapes to the acre, but grapes fit only for making the lighter types of Sherry.

THE GRAPES
Of the limited number of white grape varieties that flourish in the lime, clay and sandy soils of Jerez vineyards, one is outstanding, the white Palomino, also known as Listan amongst other names. It is grown in all Albariza vineyards, as well as in some others, and it bears large bunches of medium-sized, very sweet, golden grapes. The Canocazo or Mollar blanco is also a very sweet grape that is cultivated in Albariza vineyards, but it is too shy a bearer to be popular. The Pedro Ximenez, the sweetest grape of all, is grown to a limited extent only, and in the folds of some Albariza vineyards which hold a little more moisture. Albillo grapes are mostly grown in Barros vineyards, whilst the Perruno, Mantuos, Beba and the larger type of white Moscatel (gordo) are varieties cultivated chiefly in Arenas vineyards: they yield a greater abundance of grapes, quite sweet to the taste because of their lack of acidity, but most of them are actually not so rich in grape-sugar. Thus, whilst the alcoholic strength of a wine made from some of these grapes averages 11 per cent., that which is made from Palomino grapes reaches 12.5 to 14 per cent., and from Pedro Ximenez grapes 15 per cent. of alcohol.

THE VINTAGE
September is the Vintage month when Palomino, Pedro Ximenez and all the finer species of grapes are ripe and must be gathered, whilst coarser grapes are usually picked in October. The pickers do not cut off all bunches indiscriminately, but the fully ripe ones only, going up and down the same rows of vines several times; there is little or no rest for the vintage workers between sunrise and sunset, but there is no sign of any feverish hurry among them, nor of un-Spanish haste. The freshly picked grapes are conveyed in baskets or hampers to large holders set on the back of a patient mule, and when these holders are full, the grapes are delivered to the nearest farm, where they arrive fresh and dusty: the contents of each holder is then spread upon round esparto grass rush mats, and they are left there for twenty-four hours in the open before being brought to the lagar within, and pressed. The Pedro Ximenez grapes, for making sweet wine, are left under the scorching September sun for a fortnight; they are covered at night with esparto grass matting to avoid any condensation of the morning dew upon them.

To get the complete free Ebook about Sherry, go to www.thewinelover.org

About the Author

Michael Johnson loves a glass of wine. He also likes to write, so a website about wine seemed to make sense. Visit www.thewinelover.org for a free wine eBook, more articles, information about wine and a new forum. –

Cookie Cake Pie with Chocolate Chip Cookie and Chocolate Cake 9″-Topped with Grape and Orange Butterfly Gummie Our Cookie Cake Pie is baked in a pie pan, with cookie dough on the bottom and our delicious cake on top, than our fondant icing poured on top. It makes a great surprise for any occasion.

I think it quite safe to say that more has been written about the cultivation of grapes than has – or ever will be – written about any other fruit. This is not surpris?ing, considering that the grape is probably the oldest of known fruits.

Surprisingly, grapes do not need loads of manures and fertilizers; they grow well on quite poor soils and need little after-attention. The roots will search out and find what they want; all we have to concern ourselves with is where to put the top-growth – the vine itself.

If one wall of your house faces south, south-west or even west, that problem is solved very easily. If you cannot plant the vine under that particular wall, plant it round the corner and train the vine round to the sunny side of the house. Grapes may be grown in the open garden in similar fashion to loganberries, or they may be trained over sheds, garages, out-houses and such-like.

Vines are not expensive, and if two are planted, the yield may be regarded as fantastic when considering the value of the wine that may be made for many years.

Planting is best carried out in autumn and in any case before Christmas. If planting against a wall, take out a hole about two feet each way and plant so that the stem of the vine is about fifteen inches away from the wall itself. Dig deeply and work in any compost that may be available and some builders’ rubble if you can get some. A dusting of lime forked in will be helpful. Spread out the roots well and plant as recommended for fruit trees.

Having planted the vine, spread a little manure above the roots: this will not be necessary in subsequent seasons, but the vine will benefit from a mulch each spring if you can give it one.

Vines must not be allowed to fruit the first season; therefore they must be cut back to about four buds.

Having planted the vine and cut it back, we must decide how to train it to cover the wall.

The best plan is to use special wall nails, run wires to and from these and train the vine to the wires.

The four long growths that come from the four buds you left when cutting back are stopped at the bud nearest the growing point. These four leaders are the basis from which the vine will be built up to cover the wall. If flower buds form during the first season, they should be nipped off so that the vine uses its energy producing wood for subsequent fruiting. First-season fruiting often permanently weakens a vine.

When pruning, remem?ber that next year’s fruit will be borne on the wood made this year. But we do not want masses of long, straggling growths hanging about all over the place, so during the summer it is best to cut some of them out. Those left to bear next year’s fruit should be cut back to five or six buds in autumn or early winter. Only new growth should be cut during the summer; never cut old wood during summer – indeed old wood must never be cut after Christmas, as this can cause profuse bleeding which may be quite impossible to stop. By all means cut away some of the old growth to make way for new wood, but if this has not been done before Christmas leave it until the next winter.

Many varieties ripen in September – or earlier if the summer has been good. This is especially advantageous because the weather is still warm enough for a satisfactory fer?ment when you come to make the wine. This is not so important to those who carry out their fermentation in the house, but where it has to be carried on in a shed or outhouse the warm weather is a great help.

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Cookie Cake Pie with Chocolate Chip Cookie and Chocolate Cake 9″-Topped with Grape and Cherry Butterfly Lollipop Our Cookie Cake Pie is baked in a pie pan, with cookie dough on the bottom and our delicious cake on top, than our fondant icing poured on top. It makes a great surprise for any occasion.

I think it quite safe to say that more has been written about the cultivation of grapes than has – or ever will be – written about any other fruit. This is not surprising, considering that the grape is probably the oldest of known fruits.

Surprisingly, grapes do not need loads of manures and fertilizers; they grow well on quite poor soils and need little after-attention. The roots will search out and find what they want; all we have to concern ourselves with is where to put the top-growth – the vine itself.

If one wall of your house faces south, south-west or even west, that problem is solved very easily. If you cannot plant the vine under that particular wall, plant it round the corner and train the vine round to the sunny side of the house. Grapes may be grown in the open garden in similar fashion to loganberries, or they may be trained over sheds, garages, out-houses and such-like.

Vines are not expensive, and if two are planted, the yield may be regarded as fantastic when considering the value of the wine that may be made for many years.

Planting is best carried out in autumn and in any case before Christmas. If planting against a wall, take out a hole about two feet each way and plant so that the stem of the vine is about fifteen inches away from the wall itself. Dig deeply and work in any compost that may be available and some builders’ rubble if you can get some. A dusting of lime forked in will be helpful. Spread out the roots well and plant as recommended for fruit trees.

Having planted the vine, spread a little manure above the roots: this will not be necessary in subsequent seasons, but the vine will benefit from a mulch each spring if you can give it one.

Vines must not be allowed to fruit the first season; therefore they must be cut back to about four buds.

Having planted the vine and cut it back, we must decide how to train it to cover the wall. The best plan is to use special wall nails, run wires to and from these and train the vine to the wires.

The four long growths that come from the four buds you left when cutting back are stopped at the bud nearest the growing point. These four leaders are the basis from which the vine will be built up to cover the wall. If flower buds form during the first season, they should be nipped off so that the vine uses its energy producing wood for subsequent fruiting. First-season fruiting often permanently weakens a vine.

When pruning, remember that next year’s fruit will be borne on the wood made this year. But we do not want masses of long, straggling growths hanging about all over the place, so during the summer it is best to cut some of them out. Those left to bear next year’s fruit should be cut back to five or six buds in autumn or early winter. Only new growth should be cut during the summer; never cut old wood during summer – indeed old wood must never be cut after Christmas, as this can cause profuse bleeding which may be quite impossible to stop. By all means cut away some of the old growth to make way for new wood, but if this has not been done before Christmas leave it until the next winter.

Many varieties ripen in September – or earlier if the summer has been good. This is especially advantageous because the weather is still warm enough for a satisfactory ferment when you come to make the wine. This is not so important to those who carry out their fermentation in the house, but where it has to be carried on in a shed or outhouse the warm weather is a great help.

About the Author

Brian Cook is a freelance writer whose articles on home wine making have appeared in print and on many websites. You can find more of these at: www.makinggreatwine.com –

Cookie Cake Pie with Chocolate Chip Cookie and Chocolate Cake 9″-Topped with Grape and Cherry Butterfly Gummie Our Cookie Cake Pie is baked in a pie pan, with cookie dough on the bottom and our delicious cake on top, than our fondant icing poured on top. It makes a great surprise for any occasion.