0's and has been added to continuously since (a room here, a deck there - you get the picture).Adjacent to the house was a vineyard. Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, which are pretty much only good for making wine.
We ended up buying the house, and then had a discussion on what to do with the vineyard.
We both really like wine - especially big red wines that go with a good steak. I was in 4-H growing up, so know something about agriculture. Bruce grew up near vineyards in Livermore, so he had seen all the work involved in keeping vineyards running.
So, we figured why not - le'ts keep on going with growing grapes and making our own wine.
Well the first year, 2006, was spent mostly fighting deer. There is a 8' fence all the way around the vineyard, but the deer were still able to jump in and eat the tasty goodness inside. We patched the fence and they still got in. We added two feet to the height of the fence and they STILL got in. Long story short, we had a very small harvest, because in the end one smart, crafty, hungry deer was still getting in there to eat the vines (and grapes).
This year, 2007, we won! I think a big part of it has to do with a neighborhood dog actually. The grapes grew as they should. Here's the time-lapse view over the course of about 4 months.
Understand that the grapes don't just magically grow this way by themselves - I'm out there about 4 hrs/week - pruning, training, weeding, managing cover crop, and spraying the vines. It's good exercise, and mostly mellow and a nice break from the hours I spent in front of a computer at work.
I realize that I need to start archiving some of what I'm experiencing and learning. What better way than to start an online diary! (c'mon, you know that's all most blogs really are). But you're welcome to follow along as I sporadically update with some the happenings here in our grape patch!
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