Ken Albert

Folks, when visiting the vineyard look at the rows and rows of vines, and frequently comment that it must be a lot of work and where do we get enough people to harvest all those grapes?  While it is always a challenge to find folks to do this kind of farming, the harvest is a relatively easy time.  Some even volunteer to help at that season.  It’s a time of soft (usually) fall weather, and you can sample the fruit as you pick.   One of the real challenges is now….winter time.  This is when we prune most of last year’s growth off the vines.  Last winter we did it on snow shoes and  in very warm parkas.  This year we are doing it using ice cleats on our shoes and rain gear. We start in January and our goal is to finish before the vines start to awaken in late March.

A prospective pruner has to be trained before we turn him or her loose on the vines.  If you prune too much not only do you lose some needed fruit but you over-invigorate the vine.  If too little is pruned the vine may over-produce, resulting in poorer quality fruit and the resulting stress on the vine might lead to too small yields the next season.  We aim for consistent yields from year to year or, in viticulture terms, a “balanced vine.”  On the left is one of our 6 year-old Marquette vines before pruning and on the right is a Marquette vine after pruning. (check out the video at the bottom of the page.)

We mostly prune canes, the soft, smooth-barked one-year growth.  We usually leave a few buds on these canes from the previous season’s growth.  These buds will be the coming season’s source of fruit.  If there is not a lot of previous-year cane growth, we will prune more aggressively, leaving fewer buds.  We hope this will keep fruiting down somewhat and coax the vine to show some more vigor.  Viticulture texts go into detail on this subject, with formulas for pruning weight of the one year canes vs. the number of buds to leave on the vines, and the resulting fall harvest fruit weight , and we follow their guidance.

Based on the pruning weight on our Marquette vines this 2011-2012 winter, we have hopes for a very robust harvest next fall.   So….. while we may not seek new volunteer winter pruners, yes, we still welcome your interest in work here during the harvest season and hope you’ll enjoy snacking on some the fruit as you gather clusters and drop them into the harvest lugs.  -Ken

Check out this short video of Ethan pruning a Marquette grapevine.

Lisa Arms

Where’s all the snow?  It’s mid-January and our grapevines are sporting only a dusting of the white stuff.   Good enough for me- I’m happy to consider it a snow day and stay home and cook.  Here’s a great cold weather recipe with deep flavors that will warm you and transport you to an exotic place.   I think our Cabernet Franc Merlot is the perfect red to pair with this dish.  Red wine with chicken you may ask?  Yes!  Our CFM is earthy and soft with notes of dark fruit – it marries beautifully with the dried fruits and complex Moroccan flavors in this dish.  I used 100% organic Ras el Hanout spice blend from Teeny Tiny Spice Co. of Vermont- a small, local, family run business offering exotic spice blends based on cuisines around the world.  Enjoy!  -Lisa

Moroccan Roast Chicken Stuffed with Couscous

 
Couscous Stuffing:
1 1/4 cup couscous
1 cup hot water
¼ cup dried dates, (chopped)
¼ cup dried cranberries (chopped)
(dried figs, apricots and raisins work well too)
2 tsp. coriander
2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
2 Tbsp. honey
Salt and pepper

1 3lb. chicken (local option: Misty Knoll)
4 Tbsp. butter, softened
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 Tbsp. Ras el Hanout (local option: Teeny, Tiny Spice Co.)
1 Tbsp. Paprika
1 Tbsp. honey
1 Preserved lemon, halved (optional)
Chicken stock

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Start with couscous in a large bowl.  Bring 1 cup water to a boil, then add to the couscous, stirring with a fork until fluffy and all water is absorbed.  Stir in dried fruits and spices.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Set aside to cool.

Rinse and dry chicken and place in a roasting pan.  Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the cooled couscous mixture and preserved lemon, if using, and tie the legs together.   Make a compound butter by mixing the Ras el Hanout, paprika and garlic into the softened butter.  Spread the butter mixture all over the chicken.  Drizzle the chicken with honey and season with salt and pepper.  Add 1/3 cup of chicken stock to the bottom of the pan.

Place in pre-heated oven and roast the chicken, basting occasionally and adding small amounts of stock to the pan when needed.  Roast until golden brown, about 1- 1 ½ hours.  Transfer chicken to a carving board and let rest about 15 minutes before slicing.  Serve with couscous, pan juices and SV CabFranc Merlot.

Shelburne Vineyard grapevines with a dusting of snow.

Ken Albert

I have the belief we can make world class Ice Wine here in Vermont.  Currently the mecca for Ice Wine is the Niagara Bench (the land lying above the south shore) of Lake Ontario on the Canadian portion of the lake.  There in Ontario, due to the influence of the “warm” waters of Lake Ontario, harvest must frequently wait until January, or sometimes February, before they get a day cold enough to harvest.  Here in VT, Lake Champlain is also a moderating influence, but not quite as much.  The rule of thumb for Ice Wine is that the harvest can only take place at a temperature no warmer than -8C (17.6F).  The latest we have harvested here at Shelburne Vineyard has been the 29th of December.   The grapes are in much better shape the earlier the harvest.   Late fall and early winter freeze and thaw episodes really do a job on the grapes. This, along with all the nibbling (actually devouring) the birds and raccoons do, makes for a very precious and challenging harvest.

The Ice Wine grape variety of choice is Vidal Blanc .  This is because:

—-Vidal clusters hold fast to the vine under winter conditions and

—-the grapes retain a considerable amount of acidity when ripe.

A quality sweet wine needs a balance of natural sweetness and natural acidity.

Many ask why we wait for a serious freeze before harvesting.  At 17.6F the high sugar content liquid in the grape is still not frozen as very sweet juice freezes at a lower temperature than water.  Pressing a Vidal grape during normal harvest time would produce juice with a sugar content of 21 to 22% by weight.  When we begin pressing the partially frozen grapes the juice that flows first is over 40% by weight sugar.   The longer we press the lower the sugar content of the juice as the frozen water portion of the grape begins to thaw.  We can pick the sugar point to stop at.

We harvested on Sunday, Dec 18 2011, at 10F.  It was a crisp, bright, windless morning. We harvested 900 pounds of grapes.  Ethan our winemaker and his crew pressed until the entire juice content was 34.5% by weight.  (34.5 Brix).    The acidity was 9.7 grams/liter (0.97%) and the pH was 3.0. We stopped pressing after 27.5 hours and produced 56 gallons of juice.  Marathon over!

The next step is introducing (“pitching”) the yeast.  Due to the high sugar content, fermentation is a very slow process.  We will monitor the progress and stop fermentation when the residual sugar is around 12%.  This will make a nice dessert style wine with approximately 11% alcohol.

Over the last two seasons we have increased our acreage of Vidal Blanc by 200% so we hope to have more Ice Wine available …when these vines mature….over the next few years.Since it seems like we can never make enough!

- Ken

Want to see more photos of our 2011 ice wine harvest?   Click here >>

Rhiannon Johnson

What makes a better gift than wine? Nothing! No really, few gifts are more appreciated than a great bottle of wine. This year, we decided to step up the quality of our gift baskets just a bit. Festive bows and locally made baskets really make these gifts special (although I have to confess, I only know how to tie one type of bow so far). We have several styles and price ranges to choose from and of course, each basket features our wine. The most unique baskets this year are hand woven by a Salisbury, VT resident, Maura Clancy.  Some are filled with wine and Vermont artisanal food products, while others simply have a bottle of wine and two glasses with our classic logo.

Click on any image for details..

 
The ultimate wine lover’s gift basket includes a bottle of our Vermont grown, New World Red along with two wine glasses, a Vinturi Aerator, a corkscrew and VacuVin Wine Pump – this would make the perfect gift for any wine enthusiast or someone who just discovered the pleasure of drinking wine.

 
These baskets were a lot of fun to put together and we hope that you will enjoy sharing them with your friends, family and clients (but if you want to pick one up to treat yourself, I won’t tell anyone!). You can purchase these gift baskets in our Tasting Room or give us a call if you’d like to have one shipped (802.985.8222).  -Rhi

     
Bob and Macy                         Food Shelf Donations           Bread and Butter Farm

Thanks also to our fabulous vendors who donated raffle prizes to benefit the Food Shelf, and who served up a delicious and festive array of local foods and wines to sample and purchase.  Some of the delicious local food offerings included, a selection of Cheddar Cheeses from our good friends at Shelburne Farms (the perfect taste with our Cayuga White), Gouda from Taylor Farm, Bacon and Summer Sausage from VT Smoke and Cure as well as Croutons and Stuffing Mix from Olivia’s Croutons.  One could also sample gorgeous handcrafted breads from Bread and Butter Farm, tender bites of Quail from Cavendish Quail, cheeses and butter from Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery, cheese and caramel from Fat Toad Farm, and artisan Black Flower Chocolates that looked like little jewels in a box.

   
VT Smoke and Cure             Olivia’s Croutons                   Shelburne Farms

   
VT Butter & Cheese             Fat Toad Farm                        Black Flower Chocolates

Wine tastings included offerings from our friends at Eden Ice Cider, East Shore Vineyard, Artesano Meadery and of course a full selection of our own Shelburne Vineyard wines.  American Flatbread produced pizza to order from their mobile wood-fired pizza oven.  Every time the front door opened the mouth-watering aroma of flatbread wafted in!

   
East Shore Vineyard            Eden Ice Cider &  Artesano    Shelburne Vineyard

Our Autumn Wine & Food Festival has become one of our most popular, annual events and every year, we brainstorm ideas to make it even better.  This year, we decided to expand the festival into our processing room to enhance the flow through the tasting room and allow for a bit more elbow room for guests and vendors.  It worked beautifully and visitors enjoyed wine tasting among the tanks and barrels.  We’re already talking about next year- we’d love to hear your thoughts!  Thanks to all who came and we hope to see you again soon!

   
American Flatbread              American Flatbread            Taylor Farms

Lisa Arms

Shelburne is a tasty town; a place where one can eat local, and eat well.  Within our historic town and it’s environs, we have neighbors growing and producing most anything we could want for our Vermont table – cheese and dairy products, meats, fruits, veggies, grains, breads, beer, honey, sweets, and of course wine.  Eating and buying local is a great way to support our neighbors and our community. So, to kick off Eat Local Week, I’d like to offer this Neighborly Apple Pie.  It’s made from apples picked at Shelburne Orchards, served with Shelburne Farms’ Cloth Bound Cheddar Cheese, and our own Duet Ice Wine made from Vidal Blanc and Arctic Riesling grapes grown right here on our vineyard in Shelburne.

A Neighborly Apple Pie

Preheat oven to 420 degrees

Crust
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour    (local option- Nitty Gritty Grain pastry flour)
1/2 lb salted butter    (local option-Vermont Butter & Cheese Creamery)
Pinch salt
1/2 – 3/4 cup ice water

Filling
8-10 tart apples    (local option-Shelburne Orchards Macintosh)
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 tsp lemon zest, grated
1/3 cup cornstarch
4 tbsp butter

To make pie crust:
Put flour and salt into a food processor.  Chop butter into bits and add to flour.  Pulse until butter is the size of peas.  Slowly add ice water and process until dough just starts to hold together.  Turn the dough onto floured board and press into 2 disks.  Try not to handle it too much, you want to see bits of butter throughout.  Cover the disks with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

After the dough is chilled, turn one disk onto a floured board and roll out until it’s about 1/4 inch thick.  Keep surface well floured so the dough doesn’t stick.  Fit loosely into the pie place and letting the edges drape over the sides.

To make the filling:
Wash, peel and core the apples.  Chop into 1 inch pieces and toss with sugar, spices, extracts, lemon zest and cornstarch, then let sit about 5 minutes.  Pour the apple mixture into awaiting pie crust.  Dot top of apples with butter.

Roll out the 2nd disk of dough and drape it loosely over the top of the apple pie.  Press down edges to seal, trim excess dough and crimp the edges.  Cut vents in the top crust to allow steam to escape.  If you want, brush the top crust with a little water or cream and sprinkle lightly with sugar.  Place pie plate on baking sheet and bake the pie at 420 degrees for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees and continue baking for another 30-40 minutes, checking occasionally for over-browning.  If crust begins to get too brown, cover with foil for the remainder of baking.  Cool completely before slicing.

Serve this pie with a couple of slices Shelburne Farms Cloth Bound Cheddar Cheese and a small, chilled glass of Shelburne Vineyard Duet Ice Wine – a combination that’s sweet, tart and a little sharp.   For more information about Eat Local Week, check out Healthy Living’s website at www.healthylivingmarket.com I’d love to hear from you….. how did your pie turn out?        Lisa

Ken Albert

The full force of Irene never quite reached us here in the Champlain Valley.  We even were able to keep our tasting room open during that stormy, but actually mostly rainy, Sunday and we hosted many a stranded visitor.   The next day was sunny and we inspected all our vineyards.  Virtually no damage! Except for a few slightly tilted trellis posts, all looked intact.

A few days later the Louise Swenson and Marquette vines planted on our winery site told a different story.  All that moisture in the soil caused the nearly ripe grapes to swell up and start to crack.  And, wherever a crack appears there is danger of rot.  We are not complaining, we certainly were very lucky compared to our neighbors just a little bit south of us.  But up to that point in time our grapes were sailing into harvest in perfect condition.  We were kind of relaxed going into the harvest season.  Now we had to rapidly develop emergency plans.

The swelling phenomenon occurred on our Louise Swenson vines first.  Louise Swenson form large beautiful white grape clusters with reasonably thin skins.  When we discovered the cracking we made the decision to harvest immediately.  Thanks to a super crew of 15 or so local Vermonters we got the entire 3 ton crop off the vines very quickly.  We started at 8 AM on Sunday the 11th of September and finished by 11 AM the same day.  We would have liked to keep the grapes on the vines a few more days, but we got to them in time to prevent what was a very high quality crop from going downhill.   The delicious tasting juice is now fermenting away in our winery.

The next Irene target turned out to be our Flagship red grape, Marquette.  The grapes started to shrivel due again, to thin skins on grapes starting to swell and the cracks providing luscious targets for honey bees to feast on.  We accelerated that harvest by a week or so and this last Sunday picked them all.  There is no shortage of sweetness in the harvested grapes as the brix reading (percentage by weight that is sugar) came in at 26.8!   We will strive to make as good a red wine with these grapes as we did with the 2010 Marquette vintage.   Stay tuned.

We’ve inspected our other vineyard plantings for Irene effects.   All our other varieties look fine except our Riesling on our Meach Cove site.  Riesling, being of pure European parentage,  is our most susceptible grape to any potential non planned-for happening.   Sure enough, the Riesling leaves, which up that that point in time were in pristine condition, developed a serious case of downy mildew.  The leaves went downhill, losing green area needed for full ripening of the Riesling grapes.   Right now the leaf canopy looks like it would normally look like in late fall……a little green and a lot of brown.  We’ve stopped the progression of the mildew on the leaves with an application of a mild fungicide suitable for application close to harvest (phosphorus acid), but the ripening power of the vines is significantly diminished.   Riesling is the latest variety to ripen so we have another 2 to 3 weeks before harvest.  We expect these very nice, disease-free grape clusters, absent sufficient green power, will not lose sufficient acid to make a good dry or semi-dry wine.  So there is the phrase “when you have lemons, make lemonade.”  We won’t make lemonade from these grapes, but our plan now is to make a sweet dessert wine.  Yup, when you have high acid, you make sweet wine to balance the acid on the palate.  The finest sweet dessert wines have high acid so we have high hopes for making a quality after- dinner wine with these grapes.

Again, we are not complaining, but we are changing our plans to accommodate to what turned out to be a latent Irene effect.

Ken

Ethan Joseph

Lisa Arms

Dining at sunset among the grapevines.
Every August, just before the harvest season begins to heat up, the staff at Shelburne Vineyard sit down together to an al fresco feast among the vines; farmhouse style.  It’s our calm before the storm.  Long tables laid end to end are covered with white cloths.  Our eclectic and colorful assortment of plates, napkins and silverware are all brought from home to reduce waste.   Platters of food are arranged on the tasting bar just as the sky begins to glow pink.

Let me just say that we have some good cooks in our group.  Some REALLY good cooks.   The food is potluck and local (mostly) with a variety of dishes as unique as the personalities creating them.  Not surprising – we wine lovers generally love our food as well.

Our late summer dinner in the vineyard is an opportunity to discover some amazing wine/food pairings.  (2010 Marquette with Ethan and Tommy’s oak barrel smoked beef brisket- wow)  It’s also a good opportunity to pull out some “library wines” – (past vintages that have been dozing in the bottle for a few years)- and see how they’ve held up over time.  One of our happy discoveries was a 2006 bottle of  SV Traminette.  A lightly sweet, fruity white that was still refreshing and delicious.

We all look forward to our vineyard dinner as a time to come together and share good food, good wine and good company, surrounded by grapevines heavy with ripening fruit.  We’re well fed and ready to gear up for harvest!   But first, a nap.

Lisa

Lisa Arms

Every Greek YiaYia has her own special version of Dolmathes.  Some use meat, others wouldn’t think of it.  Some use dill and mint, others swear by tomato and egg.  There are almost as many versions as there are Greek grandmothers.  Of course, I’m partial to my family’s recipe – a light, meatless little mouthful with lots of lemon and herbs.  Spring is the best time for making these little bite-sized, herby bundles, especially if you’re lucky enough to have access to fresh grape leaves.  Leaves are best when young and tender, and freshly plucked from the vine.  A cold, crisp glass of Shelburne Vineyard Cayuga White hits the spot with these lemony bites.

Dolmathes

24 freshly picked grape leaves, rinsed (the jarred variety work well too)
1/2 cup rice
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
2 Tbsp mint, chopped
Fresh lemon
1/3 cup olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Start with a basket of freshly picked, young grape leaves.  (or a jar of preserved leaves)

Rinse leaves, then blanch in boiling water for about 3 minutes. (they will lose their bright green color)  Refresh under cold water.

Lay flat and use a pairing knife to cut out the stem and tough vein.  Prep all leaves and set aside.

Prepare filling.  Mix uncooked rice, finely chopped onion, parsley, mint and olive oil in a bowl.  Season with salt and pepper.
Place teaspoon filling on each grape leaf.  (Don’t be tempted to add too much or it will burst when cooked).  Roll into a little cigar.

Finish rolling all the dolmathes. Arrange artfully and admire your work.

Put dolmathes into the bottom of a heavy pot.  Pack tightly in single or multi-layers.  Squeeze juice of fresh lemon on top, add olive oil and about 1 cup water.  Place a heavy plate or pot directly on top of the bundles- this holds them together as they cook.  Place pot on the stove and bring to a simmer.  Simmer, with plate on top for approx. 30 minutes, or until rice is tender.  Eat warm, cold or room temp.  Yasou!

Lisa