Harvest has begun and life is ZANE-y!

Well, here it is, the end of September... and that means harvest time at the vineyard! I don't think Billy Zane (pictured above) has anything to do with it, particularly, however I must admit that when I see him, ripe fruit does come to mind.



And so... ahem... yes... - the grapes used to make white wines are the first to finish "verasion" (or coloring), and the first to be harvested. Today the vineyard field hands harvested the chardonnay grapes which will be used in our champagne. We purchased these grapes from a nearby farm, as we don't grow chardonnay grapes on our own land, and when they were ready for harvesting, our workers went over and did the cutting by hand. Next week we will be harvesting the Sauvignon Blanc grapes, which we do grow on site.



They brought back truckloads of yellow containers full of grapes, and proceeded to dump them into the de-stemming machine. Unfortunately, my camera batteries were not charged up, and so I resorted to using my cell phone camera for the following photo - but you will get the idea. The guy at the top is dumping grapes into the machine, and about midway down, just between the white slats on the fence, you can see the pile of green grape stems that have been summarily separated from the grapes!



Sadly, with the harvesting season comes the fruit fly season. We have wine bottles with just a bit of red wine left in the bottom stationed all over the tasting room - in the bathroom, on the porch, near the register, because if we didn't the clouds of fruit flies would severely limit the customers' enjoyment of the fine beverages we have on offer.

"I've never seen a fruit fly, but anyway -
it's don't ask don't tell!"

On Saturday, the tasting room was so cram-packed with patrons that you couldn't walk a straight line from the counter to the door. All. Day. Long. Yesterday and today have been extreme in the other direction - only a handful of people have come by. Yesterday's most notable customers were five Polish guys, only one of whom spoke English. Made explaining the wine list and describing the wine characteristics particularly interesting.



Today I got sent out on a delivery errand in the vineyard junker - an old Jeep Cherokee. I rolled down the windows and cranked up the radio, and had a blast bombing around the North Fork. I found the wine store fairly easily, made my delivery, and was back at the farm before I knew it. Didn't take long, but broke up the day for me a bit. It's also good for me to get out and get familiar with the local area, since most of our B&B guests have no idea where they are, either, and often ask me for directions.



On a sad note, the vineyard owners just found out that the vineyard dog (the border collie) has liver cancer, and is not expected to see another harvest season. It's making cheerfulness a bit difficult for everyone, and we are all giving her extra love and pets and letting her play with her frisbee as much as she wants. The next few weeks are going to be tough, as harvest is really getting into full swing, and her health is going to be declining more rapidly as the weeks progress. Your kind thoughts are appreciated, and I know they will be winging towards the North Fork when you read this.