Sunday, March 22, 2015

The 4 bottle announcement

On the March the 1st, during a family get together, I decided to announce the Mills Vineyard would make 4 bottles of wine in 2015.

This came up while talking to my daughter and her teenage sons.  The conversation went something like this:

Julie: How's the vineyard doing?
Me: We made 2 tablespoons of grape juice last year, but this year is going to be different.
Grandsons: Subdued laughter. 
My wife rolled her eyes.  She has been through 8 years of attempted harvests, and 2 liters of juice is the best I've done.
Me: In fact, I think we can make 4 bottles of wine this year.

I had been doing the math and already knew the dormant spray was going to help with the frost problem, but when '4 bottles of wine this year' came out of my mouth, it was a bit of a surprise.  Earlier that week, I think making one bottle was the extent I allowed my imagination to wander.

It is surprising how setting a goal will focus the mind.  I had not given much thought to wine making.  My problem was simply getting 20 pounds of fruit harvested.  Of course, saying 'we are going to make 20 pounds of grapes carries no emotion.


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