Winery Wednesday - More wine to bottle

We finally got the call from the wine place and we are ready to go there and bottle another 30 bottles of wine.  The owner mentioned it the last time we got our first batch that there might be a few couples interested in doing a variety of wine.  If we were interested, we would get a variety of red and white.  This was a great opportunity to build our stock so we agreed. Luckily my son in law was the designer of our label.  He was quick and making changes and we got it early enough to send it to the wine place (Vernon Vintners).  We have been saving some bottles and a few of our friends donated their empty wine bottles.  I was in charge of washing them, removing the labels and Jeff would remove the old foil and use paint thinner to remove some glue residue.  I organized all the bottles in the box so we know exactly what to use for each type of the wine.  When we were ready to work, I got to pick whatever foil I wanted to use for our batch.  Luckily, there were so much variety that I could match each of the foil to the label.  If you look closely at the label, the color of the outline matches the foil.  Our stock is complete and hopefully the first and second batch of wines will be good for at least three years.  If you are lucky enough to get a chance to visit the Cranberry Portage B&B, you can do some wine tasting without going to a real winery.  OK maybe not the same. 

White Trio - This refined Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscat blend exudes pretty floral
aromas with hints of tropical fruit and lychee. Flavours on the palate include juicy
pineapple, mango, peach and lychee.

Italy Viognier - opens with a dramatic and intense floral bouquet enhanced by aromas of
apricots and peach. Lush peach and honeysuckle on the palate balances a crisp acidity.

Australia Cabernet Sauvignon - This complex, full-bodied wine has an appealing aroma of
plump blackberries, sweet vanilla, and fresh violets, white cherries, pepper spice and
rich tannins grace the palate.

Chilean Malbec - a brilliant bouquet of dark fruits with subtle hints of oak,vanilla and spices.
Strong plum and berry flavours balanced by moderate tannins on the palate.

Red Trio - A modern, new world style wine featuring a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah
and Zinfandel.  Aromas of vanilla, red berries and black cherries and sweet
flavours of ripe raspberry, chocolate and cherry.

Washing Wednesday - Wine bottles

In another three weeks we will be going back to the Vernon Vintners to bottle another batch of wine.  This time we will have a variety of red and white wine that five couples had pick one type each.  With this group, we are able to have six bottle of each of the wine that was picked.  The five different wines are as follows: Italian Viognier, Australian Cabernet Sauvignon, White Trio, Red trio and Chilean Malbec.  We have started collecting more empty bottles from our neighbors and I started getting them ready.  First I take the bottle and soak them in warm water and ten tablespoon of baking soda.  This process makes it easy for me to take out old labels.  Once it has soaked for at least 30 minutes, I start peeling them and the more sticky one, I use a scrubber and whatever stickiness is left on the bottle, my hubby removes them with a paint thinner.  Then I wash them again and sort all the bottle according to sizes and color.  So far we have three boxes of 12 which should be enough.  I have decided to clean some more later, just in case some of the other bottles are not up to the right height and cannot be used.  When we get our appointment to come in, we will bring all three boxes and then we will have to clean them there again in their special wine bottle washer.  We are getting excited because when everything is done we will have a great variety of wine with our own label for our house guest to try.  Luckily, I have a son in law who is so creative and an amazing graphic designer who will do our labels for this next batch of wine.