Who says wineries don't still foot stomp their grapes?  Our Grenache fruit came in today from Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard, the last fruit of the season for Lumen!  The berries looked beautiful, and after they went through the de-stemmer there was literally no free run juice - like three tons of sticky ball bearings.  This is going to turn into a great wine, but it's awfully hard to start fermentation when there is no juice.

The solution?  Will gets to climb into the bins and start a-stompin!  The grapes were so cold that after the first bin he had to put on his wetsuit booties (special thanks to O'Neill Wetsuits).  Who knew of the added benefit of being both a surfer and winemaker?  Yet another melding of two of Will's biggest passions.

What comes next is the even-better part - seeing what legendary winemaker Lane Tanner can do with Grenache fruit.  She has never made one before.  But this Grenache will not be like the big, heavy, tannic Grenaches that you normally taste from California (which are more often then not blended with a healthy dose of Syrah to add weight and color).  Grenache is a light-colored red grape, and when unblended, makes a finished wine that is similar in weight to Pinot Noir.  It also has the same food-versatility, and is a grape varietal with a heck of a lot of personality (like Lane).  No wonder Lane's favorite grape is Pinot Noir, but maybe after this vintage, that will change.

With most of the Pinot Noir fruit in, both our 667 and 777 clones of Pinot Noir from Sierra Madre Vineyard have fermented and are now going into barrel!  Lane is always the first to pick - which means our wines are also usually the first into barrel.  This results in wines that are lower in alcohol and also more age-worthy.

The Pinot Noir spent about 10 days in open-top fermenters.  We performed punch-downs three times a day, to mix in all that yummy fruit character.  The wines all went through a very slow ferment and went into barrel smelling beautiful.

We did bring in an extra ton of Pinot Noir this week from an undisclosed high-end Pinot Noir vineyard from the Santa Rita Hills, which will go into our final blend and add some extra depth and character.  Score!  That will represent about 10% of the final wine.  It is currently fermenting in an open-top bin.

The rest of the Chardonnay also came in this week - 4 tons from Sierra Madre Vineyard, Clone 15.  The Clone 15 took a little longer to ripen, but the juice is gorgeous - and will add a nice spicy note to the Chardonnay.  The Robert Young Clone of Chardonnay is now in barrel, having almost completed fermentation, with malolactic bubbling away.

Stay tuned for news on the Grenache - word is that it might be picked next week.Lane tops up a barrel of 2013 Lumen Pinot Noir.

[vc_row show_full_width="1" padding_setting="1" desktop_padding="no-padding"][vc_column][vc_column_text]Lane Tanner, Angela Osborne, and Will Henry took a trip out to Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard to look at fruit for Lumen's upcoming 2013 Grenache.  This vineyard is near the town of Cuyama, far east of the town or Santa Maria and at an elevation over 3,000 feet - making it the highest Grenache vineyard in California.

Will became fascinated with the Tribute to Grace Grenache, a wine made by Angela since the 2008 vintage.  As Will says, "this Grenache is not heavy like most, it is more medium-bodied like a Pinot Noir, and is absolute ambrosia.  It is a wine that is much more food-versatile, easy-drinking, and downright delightful than almost any other Grenache in the new world."  So Will decided to get his partner and winemaker Lane Tanner together with the master of Grenache from this vineyard, New Zealander Angela Osborne.  The two hit it off instantly - and a great wine will most likely result.  With Angela's guidance and Lane's longtime winemaking skill, we can't wait to see what Lumen produces!

In the meantime, you must try the wines from Grace.  Angela is not only a sweetheart, she makes one of the best wines on the planet.  To sign up for Grace wines, click here.

To sign up for the Lumen Wine Club and get on the list for this and other wines, click here.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

The 2013 harvest began in Sierra Madre vineyard with the picking of Pinot Noir Clone 667 on September 4.  Woohoo!  As usual, Lane Tanner (winemaker and co-owner) was the first to pick in the area - it's her style, and what you get is a wine that is naturally lower in alcohol but beautiful, graceful, and downright delicious!   Nonetheless, harvest came very early this year.

Clone 777 quickly followed the 667, and both are now fermenting along smoothly at the winery.  Chardonnay just came in this week - on September 9 - with the Robert Young clone.  It is already showing such beautiful fruit flavor - this will make extraordinary wine.

The Chardonnay is now fermenting in oak barrels, and the Pinot Noir in open-top fermenters.  Will Henry (co-owner, pictured below) is managing the punch downs in the shortest shorts he can find - ostensibly to scare away VA bugs.

When Pinot Noir ferments, the CO2 rising from the liquid pushes the skins to the surface and forms a cap of grapes and skins.  Punch downs are where you break the cap on the open top fermenters, and mix the skins in with the fermenting juice.

More news later as harvest progresses!

linkedin facebook pinterest youtube rss twitter instagram facebook-blank rss-blank linkedin-blank pinterest youtube twitter instagram