The Journey, The Good Times

The Journey, The Good Times

I'm not re-publishing all my newsletters as a heads up, some were a bit boring, non-eventful.  this one is from August/September 2022.

Well, I just had a cracker weekend in Wellington for my second tasting event! Again I received valuable opinions and feedback, support for my wines and what I’m doing and a bloody good time to boot!

At my tastings I like to do a couple of blind tasters, the more unusual/unexpected the better, for one of them I had people guessing apricot/peach some sort of stone fruit maybe…It was Carrot and Beetroot (Rooted) AND it turned out to be pretty much everyone’s favourite (was my turn to be surprised!). Orange + Sage (O Wise One) was pretty well received too, some found it a little too sweet though. I don’t expect everybody to like all of my wines, but my reds do seem to be universally liked, I only had a Plum wine (Trailer Park) and a fortified red made from Blackberry Jam (Jammed Up) available for this session, oh, no, I also had a Blackberry + Elder wine, but I knew it was good and just wanted it to be tasted before sending it off for the NZ Fruit Wine Awards.

Entries are now open for the NZ Fruit Wine and Cider Awards, very exciting! As mentioned above, I’m entering my Blackberry + Elder wine plus the Carrot + Beetroot (wasn’t intending to but it was agreed that I should!) and my Grapefruit + Herb (Oak in Paradise) which has been matured with French Oak. I can only enter into the Evaluation Class, to enter into any others (and be in the running for a trophy) you have to be making at least 200 litres of the wine you’re entering. Will be a while yet before I’m up there with the big guns! Anyway, judging takes place at the end of the month and results announced on the 11th November. To enter the competition you have to be a member of Fruit Wine & Cider Makers New Zealand.

Clearly I’m going to have to get onto making another Carrot and Beetroot wine but in general for the past month and the one coming there’s a bit of a hiatus on brews being made. Once the elders start flowering that’s when the green flag gets waved for the start of winemaking season…and I can’t wait! In the meantime there’s a bit of admin to get sorted, ie. the licencing process, more labels made up, website (??) plus a couple of sourdough workshops to teach. Onwards!

Cheers to you all, especially to you beautiful people that came to my tasting event and the bestest of friends a gal could ask for in helping to organise and host! xox

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