Snow

Season's Greetings to all our loyal blog followers and best wishes for a happy and prosperous 2011.

We've been closed during Christmas and New Years to take some family time. The break has been wonderful!

Cutting out dead canes, placing new ones and pruning is coming along just fine. We've replaced several broken end posts this year (three still left to do) which is very unusual. With all the torrential rains, we've also experienced some erosion in the vineyard rows.

It started snowing yesterday and continued through the night into this morning. We're still experiencing snow showers, but it has tapered off considerably and we are expecting freezing rain to start sometime this afternoon. In combinati0n with wet roads and below freezing temperatures tonight, the roads will become dangerous. Luckliy we're stocked up with food and goodies and will weather this storm just fine.

God Bless, Barry

Snow

We had our first snow on December 4th, which was also our Christmas Open House. The snows came in bands and by the end we had about an inch accumulated. Our wines at Yadkin Valley Wine Company are bubbling right along and we received the ten Hungarian oak barrels we'd ordered earlier this year.

I'm also making Malbec and Pinot Grigio for our family. It was racked yesterday for the first of four rackings. I cleaned the carboys, added some potassium metabisulfate (KMS) and filled everything back up to the top. KMS has potent anti-microbial properties and helps prevent spoilage. Next time I rack I'll add some oak chips.

We are sitting in the tasting room with the fire going strong and Christmas carols in the background. Merry Christmas to all. Barry

Outdoor Fireplace

Whoopie! The masons started on our outdoor fireplace today and it should be finished within about 3 weeks. They made good progress, with the outside block up to about seven feet and the firebrick flooring placement completed. Just in time, too, because the weather forecasters are predicting up to an inch of snow for tomorrow night.

We're sitting in the tasting room as I write this blog, listening to Celtic christmas carols in front of our indoor fireplace. Tomorrow is our Christmas Open House, so come sit by the fire with us and munch on complimentary goodies like Chili, veggies and cookies. And of course, Misty Creek wines.

Hooch says to tell everyone "Hi" from him.

Pre-pruning Has Started

Temperature here: 45 degrees with gusts up to 47 miles an hour. Tonight's low is 26 degrees, with tomorrow's high hovering somewhere around 45 degrees. This is warm compared to what we'll experience in January. Ha!

Today we retrieved the remaning harvest bins from the crush pad and they are stored on our trailer until the ground dries up enough to get back to the storage area. In the meantime, we have begun to cut out dead wood in preparation for laying down new cordons. Ground is too wet to get tractors or mowers in, so we wait. There's lots to do, so no is wasted time.

We're having a Christmas Open House here next Saturday, warm and snuggly at the tasting room; look for details on our web site calendar.