2018 Pinot Noir

Right after the last report at the end of July, the general weather pattern changed into what I would describe as typical for late August and September. It cooled off a little, but mostly it just clouded up with a constant threat of rain, and then stayed that way. We missed the heavy rains that hit southern PA (one vineyard there reported 13″ of rain in three days–yikes!) and the Finger Lakes, but the reduced sunlight and higher humidity are still factors that are affecting us.

I’m happy to report, though, that our growers are on top of things, and are keeping the vineyards as free from disease as is possible. A big concern now is weed control. July’s dry spell kept them pretty much in check, but once the rain came more frequently, weeds started growing like gangbusters. The problem with this is that weeds growing under the vine interrupt airflow in the vineyard, keeping moisture longer in the canopy and on the fruit. This, in turn, provides opportunity for mold and mildew growth which not only affects the condition of the fruit, but also the vine’s ability to ripen the crop if the leaves are damaged. Despite all of this, mold and mildew are generally under control and we’re still looking at a good harvest. We are on time, if not a little bit ahead of schedule.

2018 Cab Franc

Speaking of timing, some of the early varieties are now in veraison. This is the point in fruit development where color develops in red varieties, the berries have attained their full size, and the focus of vine activity shifts from growing shoots and leaves to ripening fruit and hardening off the shoots for winter. In the first photo to the left you can see Pinot Noir – which ripens at the end of September – in the beginning of veraison. Notice the variation in color of the berries. The second photo is of Cabernet Franc, which doesn’t ripen until the end of October. These berries are all still green in color as they are a few weeks away from veraison. For reference, both of these photos were taken on Aug 17.

The period between veraison and harvest is particularly crucial to fruit quality–excess rain and clouds, and/or too little heat and sun will interfere with ripening (accumulation of sugar, degradation of malic acid, and development of aromatic compounds), and have a more profound effect on the wine produced than conditions pre-veraison. So we’ll be crossing our fingers, watching the weather closely, and we will be visiting the vineyards more as we get closer to the actual days of harvest. We hope for lots of warm sunny days in the next few weeks, with just enough rain every now and then to keep the vines happy and healthy. If we get nature’s co-operation on that front, we will be looking at a really nice harvest.

Bob Green
PIWC Executive Winemaker

Contributed by Dan Wolfe, Associate Winemaker.

This harvest the weather has really been cooperating, allowing us to pick on sunny days and process the grapes in somewhat ideal conditions. Pictured above are Chambourcin grapes, which will be picked in just a few weeks as the sugar level climbs to higher percentages- making for a better wine. The juice from these grapes will be blended into our Creekside Red, a customer favorite here at Presque Isle Wine Cellars.

This week we crushed and pressed Vignoles, Fredonia, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Dornfelder, Cayuga, Chancellor, Riesling and Concord.

Our tanks here at the winery are really swirling around as many of the varieties are all ready fermenting away in the tanks.

Remember many of these local grape varieties are available for sale as juice for our home winemakers and commercial wineries.  We also still have a selection of great California and Australian juice pails available for sale also. Winemakers- click here to find all the grape and juice options we still have available.

Dan Wolfe joined Presque Isle Wine Cellars in 2011 and is our Associate Winemaker. Dan started making wines from wine kits in 2007 and the hobby quickly became an obsession. His habit then escalated to buying fresh grape juice at harvest time, and he started experimenting with blending different wines. Dan has entered his wines in many local and out of town competitions, bringing home Gold medals and best of show in places like California. He is a member of the American Wine Society and judges wine competitions locally and around the state.

Contributed by Dan Wolfe, Associate Winemaker.

The final grapes for our Eskimo Kisses and Hot Kisses are finally pressed and ready for fermentation. This is the first year I remember pressing them with the sun shining, without frigid temperatures and snow.

Now we’ll put the press pad equipment away for the winter and start concentrating on processing all of the juice and making wine. There is a lot of catching up to do after the last two months of processing this year’s harvest. Posted in the picture above is our latest batch of Creekside Blush we made this week. It is currently resting in the chiller cold stabilizing to remove tartrates and reduce tartaric Acid.

Dan Wolfe joined PIWC in 2011 and is our Associate Winemaker. Dan started making wines from Wine kits in 2007 and the hobby quickly became an obsession. His habit then escalated to buying Fresh Grape Juice at harvest time, and he started experimenting with blending different wines. Dan has entered his wines in many local and out of town competitions, bringing home Gold medals and best of show in places like California. He is a member of the American Wine Society and judges wine competitions locally and around the state.

Contributed by Dan Wolfe, Associate Winemaker.

We are honored this week to have our Falling Waters Sparkling Wine served at the American Wine Societies 48^th Annual Convention in Tyson’s Corner, Virginia. Our Falling Waters was featured in the Sparkling Wine Breakfast on November 6th. This is truly a great honor!

This past week we have been consolidating tanks, starting more fermentations, and racking and filtering wines. This will be much of what we’ll be doing from now until Christmas. The weather has been so awesome we are taking the opportunity to do as much outside work as possible before the cold and snow settle in. 

Home and Commercial Winemakers continue to pick up their Italian juice and Local juice we processed for them. We still have a few Italian juice pails and Australian juice available if you did not pick any up yet, or even if you did and want to take advantage of the opportunity.

See what juices we still have available.

Dan Wolfe joined PIWC in 2011 and is our Associate Winemaker. Dan started making wines from Wine kits in 2007 and the hobby quickly became an obsession. His habit then escalated to buying Fresh Grape Juice at harvest time, and he started experimenting with blending different wines. Dan has entered his wines in many local and out of town competitions, bringing home Gold medals and best of show in places like California. He is a member of the American Wine Society and judges wine competitions locally and around the state.

Pink Catawba wine, freshly filtered.

Contributed by Dan Wolfe, Associate Winemaker.

This week  marks the official end of harvest season here in the Lake Erie Region. It was a long exciting stretch with only a few glitches with equipment. This year we sourced grapes not only from Lake Erie but also from the Finger Lakes and the entire west Coast to ensure that we were able to fill all of our customers’ needs. In addition to those grapes and juices, we also imported Juice from Australia and Italy which is still available in limited quantities- winemakers, be sure to purchase before they are all gone!

Buy Australian Juice          Buy Italian Juice

The Touriga Nacional Port is now bottled and should be on the shelves at our Isle House and available for purchase online within a few weeks.

Today I filtered Pink Catawba as I racked it out of cold stabilization back into the winery. This wine will be ready for bottling later this week.

Check out our Online Wine Store and see all the wine we have available to ship within PA!

Italian Juice Pails are Ready for Pickup!

Italian Juice Pails Have Arrived!

The pre-ordered Italian juice pails arrived this week and are available for pick up. Did you miss the pre-order but are still interested? Call us to inquire about any extra pails that still may be available for purchase. 814-725-1314.

Learn More About Italian Juice Pails

Dan Wolfe joined PIWC in 2011 and is our Associate Winemaker. Dan started making wines from Wine kits in 2007 and the hobby quickly became an obsession. His habit then escalated to buying Fresh Grape Juice at harvest time, and he started experimenting with blending different wines. Dan has entered his wines in many local and out of town competitions, bringing home Gold medals and best of show in places like California. He is a member of the American Wine Society and judges wine competitions locally and around the state.