deVine Blog

deVine Blog

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July 2010
April 2010
March 2010

deVine Blog entries from 2006
deVine Blog entries from 2007
deVine Blog entries from 2008
deVine Blog entries from 2009

July 2010

“Suddenly thunder, showers everywhere. Who can explain the thunder
and rain but there's something in the air.”
                          “Donʼt Get Me Wrong” The Pretenders
mid july

" O.K. Don't get me wrong. All in all we survived the spring frosts with
only a little damage. On a sliding scale of one to ten we are probably a
seven or eight. But that's grading on a curve, and there's a whole lot
of ones and twos out there, and the weather continues to throw
curves at us. Cherry harvest was a disaster. A week before harvest
we had a 95 degree afternoon combined with 75 mile an hour winds
that beat the cherries until they were unusable for pie filling, which is
the major market. We were able to harvest what was left for a lower
priced juice market, but still peg the loss at about 75 percent. That
was true for most of the neighborhood. All in all, several million
pounds of cherries around these parts were ruined in a wind storm that
lasted maybe twenty minutes. What a way to start the harvest
season. Were the gods picking on me, or were they out to get one of
my neighbors and I just happened to be in the vicinity? These are the
things that keep you awake at night.
    " It's amazing what can be a disaster year for one crop can be a
banner year for another. All signs still point to a great year for the
wine grapes. Lots of heat, lots of water early, and now turning dry.
Everything is running a week to ten days ahead of average which gives the grapes even more time to ripen. We are at the midpoint of the
season. We have spent half the year praying we have a crop. We will
spend the next half wishing it was already harvested.
   " Bottled the Mojo a few weeks ago and have been selling it at the
tasting room to rave reviews since Memorial Day Weekend. Bottled the
Cha Cha Chardonnay shortly after and now have it back on the tasting
list as well. Next in line to bottle is the 2009 Sauvignon Blanc, then the
'09 Razz M' Tazz and we are caught up for a while. Just sent in for
label approval for our sparkling wine we will hopefully be selling by fall.
Did I mention that peaches will start in two weeks and then we will pick
every day for four to five weeks? Remember the guy on the old Ed
Sullivan Show (for those of you old enough to remember) who would
spin plates on a pole for a living? He would always get seven or eight
plates spinning and look real, real cool. Man, wish I was that guy. He
would eventually get one more spinning than he should, and look like an idiot. What a jerk! That has nothing to do with me, I just think the
Ed Sullivan Show is somewhat esoteric at this point in time. Actually, I
really just wanted to use the word esoteric. Where was I now? Oh
yeah, cherries. They are behind us now, in the past. We must learn to live in the present. The future is the future and there is only today,
which will of course be yesterday in the future, which doesn't exist
because there is only today. Did I mention that I have a minor in
philosophy? It will come in handy in the future to know that. But I
digress. It is a great time to visit the vineyard. It's hard to explain. I
guess you just have to be there...or here as it is.

“It just might be fantastic, don't get me wrong.”
sic. above

April 2010

Mid April

“Some things that happened for the first time, seem to be happening
again. And so it seems that we have met before...but who knows
where or when?” -Where or When Rogers & Hart 1937

What an incredible month of April! The weather statistic guru says this
is the warmest April in 17 years. That would have been 1993 I think,
but I don’t seem to be able to remember much about that year. I know
it was between ’92 and ’94, and that’s about all. The trees are in
bloom at least two weeks ahead of normal and the grapes are poking
their little green leaves out to see if it’s safe to send out the rest of
the bunch. It’s one of the prettiest times to be on the farm.
Spectacular! We have survived a couple cold nights that could have
gotten a lot colder, but didn’t. I don’t see any reason why we can’t go
the rest of the spring without all of the melodrama involving cold, cold
mornings. The average last frost date around here is May 10th, but I
don’t believe this is an average year. It’s going to be an incredible
year. Cherries will harvest 60 days from bloom, which means we will be
done before the Fourth of July for a change, and I might even stay up
to watch the fireworks this year. Peaches will start shortly after and
be done by Labor Day. And the wine grapes get an extra two weeks to
ripen into an extraordinary vintage...but I’m getting ahead of myself.

It’s still April. We are planting a few blocks of new vines this week.
Chardonnay, Marquette, and Muscat. The Marquette is a newer red
variety out of the Minnesota breeding program. Being a proud graduate
of Marquette University I have to plant some of these if I’m ever going
to bottle a “Warrior Wine”. We were warriors once, but who knows
where or when? (Actually, it was in Milwaukee in 1977, but now I
digress.) We must focus on the moment, and at this moment all is
good, all is beautiful. There’s a certain karma to it all. It’s deja vu, all
over again. Just like in ’93!

“Sometimes you think you’ve lived before all that you live today.
Things you do come back to you as though they knew the way. Oh,
the tricks your mind can play.” -Where or When Rogers & Hart

March 2010

March 2010

“I'm a lucky man to count on both hands the ones I love.”
Pearl Jam -- Just Breathe

The sun is shining, the snow is gone, we turned the clocks ahead
(March time's on) and I guess it's time to get back to work. Keith and
I left for a winery meeting in Philadelphia with cold air and mounds of
snow still on the ground. We get back two days later and it's 60
degrees and I feel like I'm three weeks behind. Here we go again!
All in all, a great winter break. No frigid cold to damage the vines
and, more importantly, we were able to get away to California for some
wine touring ourselves. A couple days on the Sonoma side, a couple
days on the Napa side, a couple days in San Francisco, and a couple
days in Paso Robles. If you haven't done Paso Robles yet we highly
recommend it. About three hours south of San Francisco with dozens
of wineries, a cute downtown and some great restaurants. What more
could you ask for? Kelly was able to meet us in San Francisco for two
gorgeous days and a couple fun nights with friends in the area. That's
her and Sue in the picture with that big bridge thing in the background.
The other picture is from a recent night in Chicago with Keith and
Amanda, the wonderful girl he surprised with an engagement ring that
afternoon. We met them at the top of the Hancock Building for a
champagne toast on a magical starry, starry night. Not a bad way to
start the season.
Now that we can see there is no winter damage, we can get busy
trimming the wine grapes. (When I say we, I actually mean the crew of
workers I hire.) We have plenty still to do in the cellar. We just put
the syrah and merlot in barrels and are preparing the whites for
bottling. (We, in this instance, usually means Keith.) We have a
sparkling wine label to design and all kinds of new items from the winter
gift shows to unpack. (That would mean Sue.) Just watching everyone
work exhausts me!
Our new wine, “Karisma”, has been introduced to rave reviews. It is a
cabernet sauvignon and merlot blend from 2008. It's a great time to
get out and visit the wineries of the area and shake off that March
moodiness. The crowds are a little less. It's a little easier to find a good
table at a restaurant, and the beaches are still a beautiful place to
take a stroll.
2010 is off to a great start. Everything is coming back to life.
Anniversaries, birthdays, holidays, Weko beach, Venetian festival...so
many things to celebrate. I have a feeling we are going to have our
best year yet! And by we, I mean all of us, of course.

Karma Vista Vineyards & Winery
6991 Ryno Road
Coloma, MI 49038

Hours
Closed Tuesday
Open: 11 - 5 Monday, Wednesday, Thursday,
Friday and Saturday, 12 - 5 Sunday

Phone: 1-269-468-WINE (9463)
Email: info@karmavista.com

Last Edited: 07/11/10
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