The Vineyard

Our vineyard is located in the most picturesque part of Cape Vesey, on the north side of County Road 8, in the heart of the fruit belt. We are a couple kilometers past the Rose House Museum.

The property is approximately 74 acres with currently over 5 acres of vines planted. White Varieties include: Geisenheim (GM322), Chardonnay, Traminette, Frontenac Gris and Seyval Blanc. Red varieties include: St. Croix, Leon Millot, Baco Noir, and Frontenac. You may not have heard of some of these varieties, but we guarantee that once you have tried the wines, you will agree that there are indeed other complex and wonderfully enjoyable varieties available other than the mainstream Cabs, Merlots and Pinots.

The vineyard was planted by hand, and is maintained by family. While we have specialized equipment to keep the weeds at bay; in our first years, we did everything with hand tools. Hand-hoeing still continues but we get a little help from our tractor and grape-hoe. Depending on the variety, we hill up the vines in the fall to protect them through the winter.

In the late winter, we wait for a warm, sunny day and head out to do our first pruning – kids, thermoses of hot chocolate and coffee and the dog in tow.

By the end of April, de-hilling and pruning is complete. We await May’s anticipated bud break - - - that highly stressful moment of truth on the effects of winter’s unpredictable temperatures and snow cover. We carefully assess and train each vine according to its capability. We also take this early growing month to determine our spray schedule, what equipment needs a tune-up, required supplies and an action plan for the season (always subject to change without notice!)

The summer months of June, July and August are whirlwinds of grass cutting, tying, hedging, spraying, weeding and constant inspection of each vine and its blossoming fruit.

In late August/early September, we shift gears and concentrate on the fruit of the vine! After all – that’s why we’re here ----to produce excellent fruit and make the highest quality wines we possibly can. Wasp traps are set up throughout the vineyard containing a special sweet mixture to keep the wasps and bees away from the grapes. We also lay down bird netting throughout the vineyard, and erect an electric fence around the perimeter to deter wildlife from scavenging the ripening fruit.

By mid-September to mid- October, our grapes are ready for harvesting and we round up our family, armed with bushels and harvesting shears. Rain or shine…. or hail, we pick until it’s done. There are some really long days…. and some really sore backs , but the reward is well worth it.

The final phase in the vineyard is to hill up the vines once again for winter, winterize the equipment and do a last clean up. Meanwhile, energies are transferred to taking care of the fermenting wines throughout the winter, for next year’s spring release.