Vintner
A dedication doesn't always have to go to someone who is no longer around. These pages are dedicated to my father, Richard "Mountain Man" Morgan, Horologist, Craftsman, Collector, Bee-keeper and Winemaker. It's been said that my dad lived a simple life and was always involved in things that wouldn't amount to much. If these are the same things that he has shown me, then life should be simple. I thank him for my appreciation of these "finer things."
I'd love to know you stopped by, so click here to sign the guestbook!
Farmer Grunders Concord Wine
Thanks to a friend, I ended up with about 80 lbs. of awesome concord grapes. It was enough to get 2, 6-gallon batches going. Here, I document the process so that said friend, and other visitors, can see where I'm at in the process. I picked up the grapes on Monday, Sept. 17 and immediately destemmed, washed, crushed and sulfited them. I added in all the initial ingredients and let it sit for 24 hours. After that period, I adjusted the acidity to .65%, confirmed my starting gravity was good (22 brix) and pitched the yeast. I'll cover and wait for fermentation to begin.
The next update is coming soon.
Dads Grape Tree 2007
This is a collection of pictures of my dads grape tree. You heard it right. It's actually a vine that I've determined to be between 10-15 years old. The trunk is larger than a ball bat and it has completely taken over a paw paw tree (note the paw paw clusters).
What a treat! I remember my dad having concord vines growing up, but I also remember the vines dying out. He clearly slipped this vine in when I wasn't looking. You would think that my interest in grape growing would not allow me to overlook such a wonder, but I wasn't looking in his trees for grapes either. I have trees in my back yard that are over run by the ivy and oak vines, so in the off season, anyone could easily mistake them as such. But into the fruiting season, here's what I saw.
2007 Grape Growing Season
Here is the 2007 grape growing season... documented with photos, thoughts, problems, whatever. I put in another row this spring. The goal is to add one row each spring. I planted Vidal Blanc and Swenson White and they're taking off. Take a look.
2007 Spring Wine Grape Workshop
A well-rounded, all-day workshop. We toured the facility, the vineyard, and watched Bruce Bordelon (Purdue University, Ag Dept, Small Fruit Specialist) prune several variety of vines. There was LOTS of wine tasting and trying it various glasses. It happened at Ertle Cellars in Batesville, Indiana. This cellar and winery is a brand-new, state of the art facility. Energetic and determined winemaker, Brian Ahaus and and Gary Ertle, the seasonsed vineyard manager are running a very nice and clean operation with all areas well thought out. I plan to write up more here in the future, so check back.
Wine Making
From the harvest to the crush, fermentation to the bottle, view pictures of the winemaking process as done at the Morgans. Making wines from cherry, dandelion, black raspberry and several varieties of grape. It's all documented here.
Morgan Family Cellar
Over the period of a year and a half, I built a small cellar dedicated to the wine-making. It was justified by the fact that at any one time, I have 30-40 gallons of wine in carboys. The cellar was to encourage me to bottle it.
I've documented the process from insulation, to the working wine cellar it is today. It is one of my finer accomplishments. If you are interested in seeing the phased construction photos, click here.
Wine Cellar Construction
Constructing the Morgan Family Cellar took about 1.5 years. I have documented the process from the insulation to the finished cellar. Be sure to look at the finished cellar pictures here.
Growing Grapes in SE Indiana
I love growing. Fruit Trees, grapvines, and the anything you plant in a garden, I find myself scrounging a little more land each year to plant something in. However, grapevines hav had my attention and I've been doing annual planting of various varieties. Here, you will find pics of growing, the problems I've had... and of course my commentary on all of the above!
