Harry RIP, the smell of the ferment and a new skill
Ah, poor little mouse, found it dead … thankfully on the floor, not in any vat. I reckon he (Harry) went happily, drunk having munched the odd fermenting grape that managed to find its way onto the ground.
Maybe we could name a wine vintage after him – Return of Harry, the Dead Mouse? Actually, I’m not too keen on any rodents, but I didn’t do it!
Plunging the cap … according to grape
I feel I now have a grasp of what character to expect of each of the 32 vats – according to grape variety anyway, not of regionality. Grenache is lighter red in colour, sharper red fruit notes and reasonable size berries. The newly fermenting Shiraz from the vineyards around The Studio is a deep purple-black, with lively bright purple foam (it’s quite lively right now) and smelling of creamy toffee and blackberry.
Both the Cabernet Sauvignon and the Durif are very small, concentrated berries, the Durif being the darkest and most intense, with strong blackcurrant, dark chocolate and eucalyptus aromas; the Cab is more of a purple red, tiny berries (Dan likes them that way), again cassis and mint, but a bit more subtle.
New skill
The afternoon’s excitement was measuring all the PH levels of the different vats. No white coats involved, but a small, but sensitive measuring instrument.