Earth Day Meditations

Wine is the consummation of human nature-love. People care so passionately about the quality of the fruit produced to make the wine that the care we take of the vines is unsurpassed in its attentiveness and devotion. In wine, the whole concept of terroir communicates how winegrowing encourages humans to be attuned to the Earth, the systems at work and the interconnectedness of it all. How often do you think about how the climactic conditions your banana withstood affected its flavor(s)? We care more now as a collective society than we did in the recent past about where things come from and how they came to be, but we’re probably not quite there yet in terms of thinking holistically about all of our choices. Anyway, terroir is more than just the soil, the microclimate and the location. It is the mark made by all the aspects of the Earth around that vine. Think: the ‘nurture’ influence on humans in the nature/nurture duality. No two wines will ever be the same and what's more fun than discovering the subtle differences with your palate?

In Rutherford our soil is full of sandy loam. Blocks farther from the Napa River at the back edge of our property produce the most concentrated fruit, as they have to burrow deeper to find a water source.  The little section of vine which grows under the shadow of the Eucalyptus tree behind the winery takes a bit more time to ripen than the rest. The south facing vines ripen more quickly than the north facing vines. There are an infinite variety of observations to make. And again, one discovers these facts through one’s senses. Tasting the grapes and paying attention. Wine is an ode to the human capacity to smell, to taste, to feel, to see, to discover and to enjoy.

I grew up in a society that spends more of childhood in a classroom learning about nature from a book than discovering it at the source itself.  Maybe that’s why being in nature is so precious to me. I experienced its majesty for the first time in early adulthood. It’s been captivating, wondrous and new every time ever since.

I write to you now with my belly in the dirt, splayed out in the middle of the vines, listening to the birds chirp, watching the grasses and the just-sprouted leaves on the vines move in tandem as the wind whispers through them. A spider scurries across my notebook; ants scuttle over tiny clumps of dirt and teeny rocks and miniature sticks along an unknowable but evidently determined path to fulfill their purpose. Contemplating our own ‘purpose’ can feel like an inscrutable burden of our elite human consciousness, but for me, being in nature makes me feel closer to it- whatever it is. The ‘purpose’ of being alive. And it feels almost simple. When the birds sing and perch on the vines and flutter around each other in instinctual patterns, and the wind blows warm, dry air through my hair and across my face, and when as far as the eye can see, plants move like jazz music in the infinite patterns created by the wind. I feel still and at peace. The American conception of what is happiness is a confusing one at times, but nature is always there to remind us of what is real. Perhaps the fact is simply that we exist.

In gratitude, I pledge to be better about using my travel coffee mug (did you know these are called ‘tumblers’?) rather than turning a blind eye to the number of to-go cups I rack up in one week. And I plan to fight against the New Year’s Resolution Syndrome and actually still be in the habit of using said tumbler a few months down the road. Check in with me.

Peju farms certified organically in Rutherford and sustainably elsewhere with CCOF certification on the horizon, has 10,000 square feet of solar panels contributing 36% of our annual energy, composts, recycles, offers incentives to employees to buy hybrid cars, and is generally committed to continually converting our daily practices to always improve on our sustainability. We started using biodegradable flatware when silverware is not a viable option this year. Every little bit really does count. What will you do differently? Starting TODAY!

I'm back at the computer now, but it was nice to take a moment with the Earth to honor her on her  special day. It’s a pretty rich sense of belonging to feel once you tap in to the fact that you are very much a part of this Earth and a part of the whole system and that we are all in this together.

Watched a beautiful movie recently which communicated this visually. ‘Life in a Day.’ Directed by Kevin Macdonald. Produced by Ridley Scott. Distributed by National Geographic Films. Made from 4,500 hours of footage submitted in 80,000 submissions from 192 nations. Watch it.

Thank you, Earth and Nature.

Thank you, Life!

Now go outside and enjoy being alive!

Cheers,

Britt

Bud-break in Rutherford

A Harey Vineyard Amble

The vineyard is spectacular today. On my mid-afternoon, head-clearing stroll, a huge hare appeared about 20 rows away from me. He leapt casually out of a row of vines and paused, staring in my direction with an air of mischief and invitation before bounding away behind the next row. Naturally, I jogged on tip-toe past the rows between us with my camera at head height until I neared where I thought he might be. Slowing to my stealthiest step, I peered around each vine until finally discovering him halfway down a row of Estate Cabernet. Now with camera pressed firmly against my face, I crept down the row like the Grinch stealing Christmas. Surely, he was welcoming my advance. Despite the unavoidable crunching under my feet and the approaching shadow of my giant figure, Mr. Hare didn't flinch, didn't move, didn't budge. For some animals, this might be explained by the defense tactic known as 'playing dead' or 'camouflage'. Although the latter is conceivable-- he blends pretty well, don't you think?- he definitely knew I knew he was there. He beckoned me closer.

And then, like so many handsome hares before him, just as he had me under his spell and drawing near, he darted through the grapevine and off into the wilderness whence he came. Fare thee well Mr. Hare. It was fun while it lasted!

Hare one minute, gone the next.

Well, folks, that concludes today’s adventures here on the Crush Chronicles. This evening is the company holiday party, so I am off to help prepare. A wonderful weekend to all!

Birds, too.

Hanging on/Hanging out.

One Cluster Left Behind.

One cent shipping special today through 12/11 for purchases of 12 bottles or more. Cheers!  http://bit.ly/holidaycatalogblog  Call with questions: 800-446-7358

No More Monkeying Around in the Cellar for Me

From Friday: 
Today, I write to you from my brightly lit desk in the very tame upstairs offices. Actually, ironically, I just heard a cacophony of high-pitched hollers from the other end of the offices. Sounds like a big sale came in, woo-hoo! The holidays are an exciting time for Patti, Jess & Christina who take care of phone sales. Anyway, it is the first Friday in two months that I've had to iron before clothing myself presentably, and that I’ve come to work to spend the day wielding the almighty mouse and keyboard. Slightly different strengths required than those for wielding the heavy hoses and 20-gallon buckets of juice in the cellar. I am in the office today because finally the seasonal work requiring so many extra hands has come to an end. There is still much going on for the full time cellar workers, but they've got that under control. We drained our very last tank yesterday to press and barrel down today- Cabernet Sauvignon from one of the later-ripening blocks on our Persephone Vineyard. Almost all of the leaves have fallen off the vines, which are now dormant and will remain so until spring when the weather warms, rousing the vines out of their winter stillness to begin again to do what they are meant to- to photosynthesize, to pull nutrients out of the ground to create leaves and eventually to flower and to bear fruit. 

'Dormancy', as defined by Wikipedia, is "a period in an organism's life cycle when growth, development, and (in animals) physical activity are temporarily stopped. This minimizes metabolic activity and therefore helps an organism to conserve energy." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dormancy)  My organism can relate to that.

Dormant Vines on Peju's Rutherford Estate

 Next week Winemaker Sara, Assistant Winemaker Joe, and Production Planner Sheri will begin tasting through the 2011 whites to see how the now two-and-a-half-month-old wine is tasting, and to start thinking about how they’ll want to blend it in a month or two. Blending involves systematic tasting through barrel-aged versus tank-aged lots, lots in French versus American and new versus neutral oak, and then blending varietals with any combination of these variations. I love how winemaking involves doing science with your taste buds. 

Most of the work that’s going on in the cellar these days is to take care of the older vintages of reds that were laying low in their barrels while Harvest's new crop, like a needy newborn sibling, took all of the attention. Mostly, it's the topping I mentioned in a a recent blog post that the crew is busy with now. On a monthly rotation, the crew will bring all of the hundreds of barrels in our Estate cellar out to the crush pad to make sure the headspace in each barrel is at a minimum, lest the wine breathe too much oxygen and lose its youthful vigor.

Naked Vines Soak Up the Winter Sun

And as the vineyard rests for winter, the sales team springs to action for the most wonderful time of year for us humans! It is certainly true that some of the best gifts in life are free. But wine is always a great gift too. Cheers!


Brittany Starr for Peju Province Winery

View from Peju, December 2011

Tank Vacancy & Pre-Turkey Day Topping

The cellar is an eerie place these days. Its spotless, vacant walkways lined with hollow tanks give no indication of the furious activity this very space beheld just a couple of weeks ago. The action is outside now and the crew continues as though nothing much has changed. It’s as though we are all in on this little secret that was the hectic harvest and now we continue at a normal pace as though this is how it’s always been. But I guess that’s just how life is. We share a meaningful moment with others and it feels like life should pause for us to appreciate together its significance, but of course life cannot. Time barrels ahead leaving us alone to process the fleeting moments through our individual recollections of them. It’s the times like Thanksgiving, which give us the opportunity to pause together and to reflect collectively. This year I am thankful for a time to give thanks!

Lony and Pablo topping barrels of 2010 Chardonnay.

Anyway, the action is outside the cellar on the crush pad now. The press runs with the contents of the last few tanks of young wine, the newly-filled barrels of Chardonnay are brought outside for stirring, and the older vintage wines brought outside for topping.

 Peju’s signature Sycamores have been stripped of their leaves for the winter, their spindly, exposed limbs a beacon for the brisk season ahead.

Well I wish you all a joyful, meaningful, restorative, fun and delicious Thanksgiving weekend. What will you drink with your turkey? I wonder how many people don’t actually eat turkey on thanksgiving… food and wine for thought...

Have a good one!

Cheers,

Britt

Topping

Peju Sycamores, Trimmed for Wintertime