We're picking fruit!

On Friday we picked our Muscat fruit for Moscato - just in time as we’re just about out of our 2011 vintage. Next week we should be picking small amounts of Sangiovese and Lagrein to make our Vino Rosato.

Jules

Lots of harvest news at di Lusso...!

Pinot Grigio fruit has arrived at di Lusso from Orange – a region well known for its high altitude and cool climate. While our 2012 Pinot Grigio style will remain basically the same, this year for the first time we have whole-bunch pressed some of our fruit. We’re expecting a really good outcome from this method when the wine is bottled at the end of May.

We are also about to bottle our first Mudgee Pinot Grigio fruit from the 2011 vintage – this wine will be the first release under our new “Cypress Avenue” label. The label is a graphic representation of a photo I took several years ago at Montalcino in Tuscany. Also appearing under this label – which covers those wines which while we are proud of are not representative of our di Lusso style – is a 2011 Sangiovese.
Rob

Vintage is just around the corner!!

Vintage is nearly upon us and we have started grape maturity testing. Most of our 8 varieties are past 50% veraison (where the grapes begin to soften and reds start to develop colour). This is also when sugars start to accumulate in the berries. To measure these sugar levels we take a representative sample from the vineyard block (say 30 random bunches), crush the grapes and strain off the juice. I then test the Baumé (measure of density using a hydrometer to indicate sugar levels), pH and TA (measure of acid level), to give us an idea of how they are ripening and how close to harvest they may be.
The samples we have tested so far are Sangiovese, Barbera, and Lagrein and from their results we still have a couple of weeks before we will need to pick for our Rosato. So, a bit more time to get organised in the winery before that one, but we just have to cross our fingers for good weather and hope the predicted rain doesn’t eventuate.

Baumé- a word often used but not always explained...
The Baumé (often represented as Bé) scale was developed by a French pharmacist Antoine Baumé. In the wine industry it is used to indicate how ripe the grapes are getting. It translates (by simple calculation) to a sugar level in the juice. In very approximate terms it also gives us an idea of the potential alcohol that can be produced in the end wine. So fruit picked at 11Bé would have the potential to produce a wine with a finished alcohol of approximately 11% (assuming the juice is fully fermented through to dryness, ie, no residual sugar).

Julia

Pomadoro!

Tomatoes are in abundance in the di Lusso garden at the moment. There is nothing more satisfying than to pick fresh produce at your doorstep and turn it into something delicious!

I have been cooking spaghetti with a fresh pesto using basil from the herb garden, cherry tomatoes, ricotta and crisp pancetta.

Another great way to use tomatoes is in a Panzanella salad. Jamie Oliver has a great recipe to try!

Ali