Lazy July Post

Well, it hot and there’s not really a lot to do, except potter around, procrastinate, and check the vineyard every now and then, to make sure that everything is OK.

Apart from the fact that there are not a lot of grapes (due to the overnight freeze on May 6th – see this video: http://bit.ly/aMtKhR ) the vines are happy and healthy. So far this year, we haven’t sprayed any sulphur (or anything else) on the vines. A few weeks ago we ploughed up between the rows as the grass was extra high this year due to all the rain we got during winter and spring, so the vineyard look a bit scruffy at the moment, but it should look nice again when the grasses and flowers and plants grow again.

General View (not much grass or many flowers)

I made a video with my mobile the other day “A walk through the vineyard” which I’ve uploaded onto YouTube here: A walk through the Vineyard

A vigorous vine

A not-so-vigorous vine

Baby grapes (no veraisson / 'envero' yet)

Bunches (I)

Bunches (II)

White-flowered creeper

Grasshopper

New Vineyard

The other day, we confirmed that we’re taking on a second vineyard as of October (ie after the harvest). It’s near a village called Villarejo, just about 10 km up the road from the vineyard we have now (in Carabaña). It’s about the same size (1 ha), Tempranillo, old vines – even older than the ones we have, judging by the thickness of the trunks. I guess about 50-60 years. I’ll find out soon enough when we get to know the neighbours.

New vineyard in Villarejo

Note the the soil - completely different colour, texture and composition from the vineyard in Carabaña, just 10 km down the road! Note also lack of grass, flowers, plants, etc. We'll soon put that right :)

(I took a video too but am having problems downloading it!)

New Winery

And we’re moving into a new (temporary) bodega. A neighbour in the village of Morata de Tajuña (who also makes organic wine – and organic olive oil) has kindly taken us in for a year, to give us time to look for a suitable place of our own.

So we have to move all our equipment and bits ‘n’ pieces from Ambite to Morata over the Summer. But before that we have to clean and disinfect everything. All our wooden equipment (presses and barrels and accessories) are mouldy because of the leaks in the roof over the winter.

Wine Hits the Shops in The USA

The wine from our first ever international shipment has hit the shops in the USA. This is the wine that we sent off on June Xth by ship and which arrived in Oakland (CA) on July 8th. It’s a Vinos Ambiz young white, 100% Airén, unfiltered, no added sulphites. I don’t know exactly which shops it’ll end up in, but I do know these ones for sure:

- Paul Marcus Wines (Oakland, CA)
- Chambers St Wines (NY, NY)

I’ve had some feedback already, via a comment on this blog in the post below called Natural Wine Shipment

Happy summer

I suspect that this will be the first, last and only post in July, as I’m taking off to Italy (Barga, Tuscany) on Saturday, until mid-August. I’ll maybe post from there, though I won’t be doing much wine-related activities (except drinking the stuff, of course). I hope to visit Tenuta Valgiano, who make natural wine, and which is just down the road near Lucca. So have a great summer everyone. I’ll be back!