MCV FARM NEWS - 3.26.10 - Born to Be Wild!!!

Morning Ya'll,

      It was a busy week around here at the vineyard and this will continue right through the weekend.  Last weekend's Wine Club event was a great success.  I had a sneak preview of the 2009 Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling.  These were warmly welcomed by the folks that attended the event.  Larry Kolar of LK Catering provided some delicious noshes for people to taste and Victor from Arthur Murray Dance Studios of Southampton and Patchogue led a group dance lesson.  Merengue was the flavor of the evening along with a bit of Hustle led by James of Arthur Murray in Merrick.  The event was a lot of fun and I look forward to our quarterly releases.

     The vineyard continues to get pruned and Jim has been spending a lot of time preparing the vineyard for the upcoming growing season.  In addition Jim is starting to prepare for his Vines to Wine program which will launch this Spring.  Check it out at: http://marthaclaravineyards.com/VinestoWine.shtml  It will be a great way for someone with an interest in wine and especially viticulture to take their interest to a whole new level.  
     If you are into great wine, African Art, Weddings, Egg Hunts, and/or Wild Women then Martha Clara is the place for you this weekend!  We have an events calendar chock full of great stuff!!!  I know for sure that the JuanMaker is into Wild Women, but that guy is just off of his rocker!  God Bless the lady that can tolerate the JuanMaker... 

     Lastly, I attended a delicious dinner with colleagues at Love Lane Kitchen hosted by Lenn Thompson on Wednesday evening.  It was an eclectic mix of 12 people from the industry.  Each of us brought a wine to be tasted blindly and it was mix of local and non-local wines.  The local wines that were peppered into the tasting showed quite well.  I can say without hesitation that our wines can stand up against wines from anyplace in the world and it is great to be part of an industry that can produce such a diverse array of high quality wines.  Quite frankly drinking local is real easy to do when their is such a high caliber of wines being produced right here in our backyards.  I am quite excited about tasting more of the liquid goodness being produced right here on the East End.  DRiNk LoCaL, EaT LoCaL, Word!     

   Cheers,

         - Juan.

Juan Eduardo Micieli-Martinez
Winemaker - Martha Clara Vineyards
6025 Sound Avenue
Riverhead, NY 11901
Email: phermentation1@aim.com
www.marthaclaravineyards.com

CHECK OUT THE JuanMaker on Youtube.com!

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL WINERY!

FRIEND ME ON FACEBOOK!

FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER!

Posted via email from phermentation1's posterous

MCV FARM NEWS - 3.18.10 - On the Road Again...

Morning Ya'll,

     Well, it seems that Spring has sprung...for now.  It is still March and winter can still make a quick appearance (But we are all hoping that does not happen).   It is nice however to see the green of plants pushing through the soil.  I was in the vineyard yesterday and you could see the flow of sap from the pruning wounds.  These wounds will soon heal and the sap will not flow from the vine, but this flow indicates to us that the soil is warming.

      Bud break typically does not happen until Early May, but it has happened earlier than that in the past.  Jim and the guys have most of the pruning completed, but there is still tying and chopping that needs to be done.  The warmer weather such as we are having now is enough to make every vineyard manager sweat.  My indicator for bud break are the dandelions, and thus far I see no sign of them.  Bud break always coincides with a beautiful bloom of dandelions in the vineyard.  Although considered a weed by most they are a beautiful site in early Spring.

      Michelle and I have been on the road in NYC.  We have been busy visiting accounts and we are much to our pleasure finding people interested in local wines.  As the greater awareness of all things local increases it is wonderful to stop into an account and find that people are genuinely interested.  This is very exciting as we have some great local wines to offer.

     Sure you can by a $5 wine from another place in the world, which may be very nice.  However, where does that money go?  Does it stay in our community, township, county, state, or even country?  Although only $5 dollars there is possibly a greater loss because that $5 is gone from our local area.  Buying local means you support your neighbors and your friends.  I am not saying only drink local, but definitely keep local in the rotation.  There is nothing better than being able to visit the vineyard, winery, brewery, farm stand, oyster bed, farmer, etc. that your food and/or drink may be coming from.  What is even better is when you visit you can see that we are all part of the same community and if you are coming from New York City it is but a mere 75 miles from where all of this great stuff is coming from. 

      At the winery there is much preparation of the 2009 White wines that will soon be going to bottle.  I know there are lots of fans of the 2008's, but the 2009's are exceptional.  I cannot wait to see some of these wines released.  If the 2008's were turning heads the 2009's are going to make peoples heads spin right around and quite possibly may pop right off!  These babies are smokin'!  In fact we are going to have the A/C on while bottling just to keep the equipment from overheating.  It is a first in which we have had to do this, but we will find it necessary for keeping the equipment running.  Well, in any event I hope to see Wine Club Friends at the event this weekend.  And if you are not a Wine CLub Friend... What are you waiting for?  Catch ya'll later!

         Cheers,

              - Juan.  

Juan Eduardo Micieli-Martinez
Winemaker - Martha Clara Vineyards
6025 Sound Avenue
Riverhead, NY 11901
Email: phermentation1@aim.com
www.marthaclaravineyards.com

CHECK OUT THE JuanMaker on Youtube.com!

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL WINERY!

FRIEND ME ON FACEBOOK!

FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER!

Posted via email from phermentation1's posterous

MCV FARM NEWS - 2.26.10 - I <3 Petroleum

Hey Ya'll,

     Well, things continue to move along in the winery and vineyard.  The 2009 White wines are getting closer and closer to bottle.  The 2009 Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling are truly stunning wines.  We will have a terrific line-up of wines to replace the 2008's when they run out and there is not much of them left.  You better snatch them up and let folks know that the 2008's are almost running out.  

     The 2008 Riesling is just starting to open up and change aromatically.  When it first went into the bottle it had intense tangerine peel and white tea leaf aromatics with a balanced acidity.  The wine now has about a year in bottle and the acidity has settled down a wee bit and the tangerine peel and white tea leaf have begun to turn into petroleum.  If you are newer to the whole idea of tasting wine think Vaseline and or fuel(I know this is weird).  This group of aromatics in wine are referred to as "Petrol" like.  Well, the 2008 whites are just starting to evolve and will age very well.  All of the whites are changing and will taste beautifully for the next 3-5 years.  I do believe the viognier and chardonnay will drink well for at least 5-7 years if aged properly.  

     The wine club event on Saturday, March 13th will be a lot of fun.  In addition to being able to taste the 2007 Cab Franc, 2007 Cab Sauv, and 2008 Five-O White I will have tank samples of the 2009 Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling.  The new wine club releases will again be paired with tasty morsels prepared by Larry Kohlar of L.K. Catering.  Larry prepared those awesome mini-pot pies that paired amazingly with the 2008 Estate Reserve Chardonnay at the last wine club release party.  
     But, that's not all!!!  We will have Arthur Murray Dance Studios of Southampton and Patchogue on hand to give a group dance lesson to our wine club members.  Arthur Murray is great!!!  Bridget and I have been taking dance lessons for the past 3 years!!!  Rumor has it we may just be showing off some of our fancy footwork.  Bottom line is this wine club release/pick-up party will be a lot of fun!!!  I hope to see you there!!!  And if you are not a wine club member, what are you waiting for?  Stay warm and think Spring.

      Cheers,

        - Juan.  

Posted via email from phermentation1's posterous

Untitled

Anybody watchin' Frontline? Crazy sh**!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Posted via email from phermentation1's posterous

Untitled

Big NeWs... Our new paper cutter has a laser!  That is pretty sweet!

Posted via web from phermentation1's posterous

MCV FARM NEWS - 2.19.10 - To Decant, or Not to Decant???

Hey Ya'll,

       This week was a little more bearable as we were spared any serious snow accumulations.  Here on the East End we had a heavy dusting of snow, where as our neighbors to the west saw considerably more.  I was shocked upon driving to Franklin Square to see the amount of snow on the ground in Nassau County. 

       I had to travel to Franklin Square to meet with the folks from The Plattdeusche Restaurant to discuss a wine dinner that Martha Clara will be hosting in July.  Yeah, it seems hard to believe but we were discussing an evening of wine under the stars in July as we walked over piles of snow!  I am very much looking forward to this dinner in quite a magnificent place filled with history and culture.  I am also looking forward to warm summer evenings!

      ***SnAp****  Okay, well back to reality it is mid-February and I have "tasted" a good number of red wines this winter.  I am often asked, "should I decant my wines?"  Well, if you asked me this a few years ago I would have told you, "no."  Now we find wines being released sooner and I am beginning to understand the value of a good decanter.  With 3 decanters in the house all of a different shape I have had many decanting options and opportunities.  My findings have been that regardless of shape decanting is recommended!!!!  I find opening a cellar cooled red best if served decanted for about 1 hour prior to tasting.  If you doubt this, open a bottle of wine and pour a small glass out then decant the rest.  Immediately taste the glass you poured out and take note of its flavor.  Now, vigorously swirl the decanter to expose the wine to air and let stand for 1 hour.  After an hour pour a glass from the decanter and compare this to your non-decanted wine.  The decanted wine will be more expressive in regards to flavor and the tannins will have softened.  Please try it for yourself the next time you open a red wine, if you have not already done so or better yet maybe you already decant?. 

       If you do not finish the bottle the first night it can stay in the decanter for a day or two.  Most homes are on the cooler side this time of year and the wine will hold just fine.  It is important to keep the decanter opening covered when not in use.  Others have asked me, "What about the red staining in the decanter?"  Yeah, what about it?  That just indicates a decanter that gets used!  

     Well, that's all for now.  I have also been asked to tell you that the JuanMaker now has his own Facebook page and you should friend him at your leisure.  Catch ya'll later!!!

            - Juan.          

Posted via email from phermentation1's posterous

Untitled

My in-laws with the Lombardi trophy.  Check it out at http://tinyurl.com/y9dm5wj

Posted via email from phermentation1's posterous