Whispering Oaks Vineyard and Winery

Wow!  It is November 1st already! 

Things have slowed down since harvest.  We've done some bottling to catch up with sales.  The reds have been taken off their skins and put into barrels to rack.  The whites should be ready in January. The flavors are great so far, despite the large amout of rain we've had this year and the very cool summer temperatures.    

We are working on an experimental batch of peach wine.  A local orchard had a large number of "ugly peaches" and wondered if we could try to make some wine from the pressed peaches.  My fingers are crossed.  I love peach wine!

 Nathan is getting a lot of turned wood projects done.  Beautiful oak, cherry, honey locust and walnut bowls, vases, and boxes will be added to the works he has on display now.  He also has some wine bottle stoppers made of burl wood that are gorgeous.  The are heirlooms in the making.  Most of his materials come from the farm.  The trees are usually damaged, diseased or felled by one of the many storms we had this summer. 

We are looking into having a tasting on the day after Thanksgiving.  A nice relaxing event that involves no malls, traffic jams, parking lot trolling or long walks to the door.  Free tasteing and lots of great gift ideas, many of them produced by local artisans.

The grapes did very well this year.  The cool temperatures and rains slowed things down, but overall a good year.  Sold Catawba to some wineries north and east of us.  

We made some Traminette wine for the first time this year.  So far, it is very citrusy.  It should develop some nice tropical fruit flavors over time.  There was only enough for a carboy this year, hopefully more next year as the vines mature.

 There was enough Frontenac to ferment this year.  We had an unofficial "QA" tasting as a "beaujolais nouveau".  Lots of flavors for such a young wine.  There is a lot of potential for this wine.

 The grape stomp was a success despite the cool weather.  The hayrides were very educational.  Many visitors picked Catawba, St. Vincent, and Vidal grapes for a snack on the way back to the winery.  The St. Vincent vines are turning a vibrant shade of red this year.