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http:// --> Ashland, Oregon HOME Valley & State Sports Nation & World Opinion/Editorial Classifieds Business Columnists Local Issues Obituaries Weather Archive Revels Etcetera Backpage Hot Topics Most Viewed Forum Photo Galleries Video Readers Polls O-Zone Online Games Movie Preview Special Sections Real Estate Guide Menu Guide Shakespeare Subscribe Contact Us Rate Card Place an Ad Featured Galleries: April 3, 2007 The rustic little vineyard By Lorn Razzano Tidings Columnist Lorn Razzano Archives Tuesday April 3rd Tuesday April 10th Tuesday April 17th Tuesday April 24th Tuesday May 1st Tuesday May 8th Tuesday May 15th As the rest of my winemaking apprentice friends were learning how to run state of the art winemaking equipment, I had been chosen by the boss to help with "crush" at a small, three person family winery on a hill not far from where I was supposed to be working in southern France. I felt downhearted because my dreams of a state of the art experience in winemaking had taken a (way) back seat by helping at this very old yet charming little winery on the hill. Everything was done by hand, including the pressing of the grapes in a basket press run by a horse, pulling a cart filled with grapes with a harness strapped to my chest and weeding/watering the vast garden every evening with an ancient hoe and a wooden bucket with holes drilled through the bottom of it. But the magic was, unknown to me, just around the corner. This magic started with the elderly woman, Maria, an Italian chef who had married a French gentleman in 1915 who owned the winery and her ability to cook and to make delightful bottles of wine! While my colleagues down the hill in the village were learning about stainless steel and controlled fermentation I was being schooled in making wine underground in the cool of the cellar the way wines had been made since before the time of Christ. We boiled whatever came in contact with the juice and used primarily the yeast that came in on the skins of the grapes. All of the wine bottles were hand washed and scrubbed and the labels, which she had bartered for with eggs and baked goods, were hand applied on every bottle. She then took me on a tour of her garden which was filled with late summer, early fall produce of every description. I received a gold mine of information on food and wine pairing every afternoon while we harvested for the evening dinner. Maria would talk incessantly about acid balance, oak on wine and which foods were wine friendly and which were not. One evening she handed me a hatchet, pointed to an old hen and said "...'desso!" (now) and I killed my first of a few dozen dinners that we prepared at the farmhouse. There simply is not enough room in this article to list the magnificent meals that were prepared during my four weeks with her. Every meal was a dining pleasure and her wine was very good to outstanding in every respect. One afternoon she told me to go back down to the village to the "Big" winery, shower and get dressed for the regional "taste off" that was going to happen in the evening. Every producer was to bring three bottles of wine in a brown bag to be judged by all of the folks attending. This "peoples choice" judging happened every year in this part of France and many of the small as well as large wineries attended. We took three red wines and over a kilo of her hand-made hard cheese and quite a few loaves of bread. At the tasting were many of the folks I had picked grapes with and were now at different wineries working. Every time they asked me about my experience at this "rustic" little winery I really played it down! I was selfish of her and this marvelous learning experience to say nothing of the three star meals! I remember kind of muttering and shaking my head and not saying much. I was the least amazed when the choices were announced and Maria had won with two of her wines scoring in the top five. She just chuckled and nodded her head as the awards were announced. Her cheese was also named in the top three of the foods brought to the judging. To this day when I am "hosted" or am visiting large, stainless steel mega wineries I look longingly to the hilltops that there just might be a bit of magic yet to be discovered. Current Comments: I just found your column and love it. I work for Janis Miglavs who is specializes in vineyard photography. On the 26th, Chronicle Books is release "Pacific Northwest Ultimate Wine Guide" and features many wineries from your area. We would love to discuss the book with you and maybe have you do a review. If interested, please contact us. I appreciate your time and again, I enjoyed finding your work. Cheers, Ron Burke Image Source / Janis Miglavs Photographs 503-625-2145 Ron Burke ( [email protected] ) - Sherwood, OR - April 12th, 10:49 AM Leave a Comment: Advertisement: Advertisement: Paid Advertising: Debt Help Inkjet Printers Payday Loans Free Ringtones Debt Consolidation Security Systems Debt Relief New Hampshire Primary Advertisement: Copyright © 2007 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers. All Rights Reserved. Del.icio.us