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2014 Bordeaux Blend at Tin Lizzie Wineworks
We filled the press with the must. Our enthusiasm over making our first qvevri wine in the United States obscures the other wines that we are making with this years fruit. For the third time we are...
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Update on Qvevri Wine
Regardless of air temperatures falling to 37ºF (3ºC) the must and juice in the qvevri are happily fermenting. My original specific gravity reading on Saturday was 1.110. As of yesterday, the SG was...
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Qvevri Wine now Having a Long Winter’s Nap
The Muscat grapes and juice have fermented. My last specific gravity reading was 0.996. There are some grape skins still huddled around the top of the qvevri. Since our weather was turning sharply...
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Reflections of Winemaking During 2014
I usually end the year reflecting on my New Year’s resolutions. However, we were so busy finishing our third book last New Year’s that I forgot to make winemaking resolutions for 2014. That didn’t stop...
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I neglected making yearly resolutions last year, so I wanted to make them before I forget to do so this year. My first resolution is to learn to make grappa. It’s not that I like grappa that much,...
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Mentoring Beginning Winemakers
My wife, Kathy, gave me a wine kit as a Christmas present in 2007. We have been writing about wineries for a year and made the decision that if we were going to write about wine, we should make wine....
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Post Modern Winemaking Forum
On the second day of the Craft Beverages Unlimited trade show and conference, Kathy and I attended the afternoon forum on Post Modern Winemaking. The format of this session was different than sessions...
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Opening the Qvevri – not what I Expected
On Sunday we opened the qvevri. I sealed the top of the qvevri last October 31st. The wine had been in the qvevri for 5 ½ months. I expected to see the clear wine at the top while the lees, seeds and...
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Taste of our First Qvevri Wine
This photo was taken of the wine and the qvevri. The wine spent the last two weeks in a carboy settling. Two weeks ago Kathy and I racked our wine out of our buried qvevri. The wine was cloudy and the...
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My First Qvevri Wine – Not What I Expected
My first qvevri wine is a 2014 Muscat. Fermented and aged in qvevri for six months. My first qvevri wine made in Maryland is not what I expected; however, it definitely was worth the wait. Besides the...
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Qvevri Winemaking in Maryland
Kathy and I acquired some Rkatsiteli grapes yesterday from our friends at Bluemont Vineyards in Bluemont, Virginia. Arriving home, we began to process the grapes and prepare the qvevri. Qvevri...
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Oops!
This morning the grapes rose to the top of the qvevri. Punch downs were every three hours. I wrote yesterday that we filled the qvevri to within two inches of the top or surface of the marani. Big...
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3:00 AM Punchdown – Not Very Romantic
Candle light and a barrel room provide a romantic setting. Some people associate wine and winemaking with romanticism. It is not difficult to imagine why a romantic vision is painted on people’s minds....
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Primary Fermentation Completed
The primary fermentation in the qvevri completed a few days ago. Yesterday I took the specific gravity reading and it measured below 1.000. After cleaning the qvevri’s lip and a few inches down with a...
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Sealing Qvevri for a Long Winter’s Nap
Sealed with a glass top, with a sample of the qvevri wine I waited to the last day of December to seal the qvevri and cover the area with several inches of sand. We had a very warm December with 29 of...
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Evaluating my 2015 Winemaking Resolutions
Cloudy wine and skins at the top of the qvevri while racking to a carboy, a 2015 winemaking resolution fulfilled. Sometimes making New Year’s resolutions is easy to do in January, but circumstances are...
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Ancient World Winemaking in Maryland
Early spring marks the time when a white wine made in a buried qvevri is opened. This week we opened our 2015 Rkatsiteli after macerating on the skins and a few stems for six months. For a bit of a...
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Unearthing the 2016 Vintage
On the second Sunday in April, Kathy and I racked our wine from its earthen qvevri. Our first task was to remove several cubic feet of sand covering the qvevri. The qvevri is buried below the ground...
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