My northern wine exposure

Spring time...finally.

2010-05-03T06:06:00.000-07:00

Farming season is about to start in Finland. Last night temperature went under zero celcius degrees but days are getting warmer (today aprx. +15 on sun). This summer I´ll try to get more heat gathered. I have already put some stones around the vines and now I´m testing black plastic behind the rows. This might get 4-5 degrees more temperature on sunny days which can be critical difference to get something to harvest autumn time.

Some of my vines buds have started to swell. In Finland this is quite early awakening. Pinot Noir Precoce I´ll plant earliest at the end of may. Last year I was quite lucky that cold didn´t kill my Sprouts. Few plants started to make leaves very late which is sign of getting frosted on spring time. On vine cuorse I got good tips how to protect plants from cold. If I can find some shelter pipe, I may set it around my vines.

I´ll get some photos next week of the yard when there is summer time opening party.

A new member to my vineyard

2010-03-19T06:36:00.000-07:00

I made interesting order to my vineyard two days ago. When snow melts I´ll plant ten sprouts of Pinot Noir on my yard. I was quite amazed when I found out that Pinot Noir cuold survive in Finland. To be precise my Pinot will be Pinot Noir Precoce. (Precoce means early ripining.)

Pinot Noir is first red in my yard. At the beginning I decided to make white wines, but more you eat, hungrier you get. I trying to get 100m2 more room for my yard too so there wuold be room for aprx. 60-70 vines totally.

One bottle of wine needs 1,4 - 1,7 kg of grapes. On full grown vine can produce 15-20 kg on grapes. So in a good year (some year in the future), I cuold produce aprx. 800 bottles of wine from my grapes. For now I´m happy if I get any grapes.

Because this is first year when vines may produce grapes, I´ll make so tests. I´ll use black background and stones to heat the area. Speacially stones are used a lot because they can hold the day heat and release it on cold nights to the area.

My biggest concern is the low-lying ground where frost may appear on spring nights. I may have to cover vines every evening when new sprouts appear. But there is still almoust half a meter of snow on the yard so no hurry yet. The Easter holidays are coming so it is time for good red wine and Easter delicacies.

Marathon du Medoc

2010-03-10T01:13:00.000-08:00

When you wait for summer eagerly, you might do some decisions just to get to the feeling. My wife suggested last autumn that we cuold try the Marathon du Medoc some day. Marathon du Medoc a.k.a. The Wine Marathon is located in Bordeaux, France. Marathon is famous about funny costumed runners and of course wine which runners also drink during the run.

So now we are planning to run 2010 Marathon du Medoc. I have studied the Bordeaux area already in case I drop in to some vineyards for souveniers and growing tips. Yesterday when we had our 4th anniversary, we tasted some Medoc Bordeaux. Château Sénilhac 2005 (Cabernet Savignon 55%, Merlot 40%, Cabernet Franc 5%) was beautifully aged wine. I tasted some blueberry in it even Alko´s pages mentioned currant. Well it is tasters opinion. Wine dry mouth on first taste, but the length of taste is long and pleasent. Wine has some sediment so if you buy it remember to decant it carefully.

My summer schedule is starting to fill fast. I need to practice for Marathon (and now I mean running not drinking) and part of my daily cycling to work will change to running. I won´t make any time goal for marathon but I wan´t to RUN it from start to goal. Marathon is on September so I´ll have good time to get on shape.

Exiting future for finnish vine growing

2010-02-19T03:47:00.000-08:00

I found out that some finnish vine growing pioneer´s has established a society. They will have a course on March and I´ll be there on the first row. I´m very eager to see other people that have the same interest and learn more about the different techniques to grow cut and care vines.

This is of course only a part of the entirety. My goal is still to make my own wine. Since my wine school studies have delayed, I have to be bookwise on that matter. Even wine is the most fascinating area in literature I know, I´m still more by doing you learn person.

As the winter has been so cold and snowy, I can probably start my vine gardening at the end of april. (Why can´t I live in some warmer country?) Two months is too much for me, so I started my season with my son yesterday. We planted squash, water melon and tomato seeds in small growing box. They need 8 to 10 weeks inside care before planting so I maybe days are warm at that time. My son´s giant pumpkin gardening was very succesful last year and we had three beautiful Halloween pumpkins on his 5 year birthday.

I think I have to nurse my gardening need more so I´ll buy Oz and James Big Wine Adventure-dvd. (I watched Sideways already).

The real test

2010-01-04T03:07:00.000-08:00

This time of year the vine plants confront their biggest challenge. Are they suitable for Finnish atmosphere? The days between Christmas and new year where quite cold. The coldest day was last saturday when temperature went to -27 degrees in Helsinki area. (60 degrees northern lattitude)

Siegerrebe and Solaris ain´t the best polar variety but with good winter protection they should survive. The good thing about the freeze is that bugs, fungus etc. harmfull vine plant enemies won´t party either. The only curse may be rabbits. The "city rabbits" have become nuisance in southern Finland. Same way as they have conquered Australia, Helsinki has become their lastest target. City is even hunting rabbits with tamed ferrets to control their birth. Spring time I will have to make some sort of fence around my vines just to make sure that only fruits are the part of vines that are eaten.

I got a lovely present from my wife few days ago. When I can´t do anything on my vine yard, she gave me The Wine Tasting Workbook by Jancis Robinson. Book has already given me many ideas and directions how to affect to the taste of my future wines. I´ll write about it later. The book is great in every way: It is very systematic, you understand it even if you a amateur as I´m and it reminds you about the basic idea of whole wine culture: to drink and enjoy it.

It is still apprx. 4 monts until spring time is here so I´ll be the champion of wine tasting before I get to garden my vines again.

Tasting Beaujolais Villages Nouveau Honoré Lavigne

2009-11-20T04:55:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was the release day of Beaujolais wines. I grabbed one with me at my way home: The Beaujolais was Villages Nouveau Honoré Lavigne. The last two yers have been quite dissapointments because Alko´s (goverment store monopoly) had selected Beaujolais that where quite yeasti.

This time selection has been better. Atleast on this label. The taste was light as Beaujolais usually is but it reminded me from Chianti with I tasted few years ago. Beaujolais has clear acids and quite fruity taste. This cuold be nice on hot day because it is supposed to serve chilled 12-14 degrees. The weather in Finland is unfortunately barely on plus degrees and it is raining. I fooled myself with fresh baguette, grilled sweet pepper, melted haloumi and olive oil. I have to say that it was best side dish with wine for long time.

I say this Beaujolais is worth of tasting. Even my wife, who has quite accurate taste and skeptical opinion about beaujolais, had a glass of this.

Boujelais Nouveau Day!

2009-11-19T02:32:00.000-08:00

What a happy surprise. I had totally forgot that it is the third thursday of november the Boujelais release day.

Four years ago the Boujelais Nouveau was very nice and since that I have tasted them at this special day. This year I´m going to get some extras with the Boujelais. Maybe some baguette with grilled sweet pepper and some Haloumi cheese.

I have to remember to get some riper wine for my wife too. Few times I have been so excited about Boujelais that I have forgot that its taste ain´t for everybody.

salud or terveydeksi (for health) as we say in Finland.

Vines hibernation

2009-10-27T08:09:00.000-07:00

The autumn has reached southern Finland. Actually it came fast. At the end of september came some snow and there where few nights when temperature went under zero.

My vines had still quite green leafes before cold night and after that they went brown in few days. So they probably froze. I hope plants have enough power now to survive winter time.

I put my vines to hibernation last week. I rolled some frost gauze on them and poured sawdust around the plants so they should be ok. There has been some very mild winters for few years in Helsinki area so if it stays the same I´m fine with it.

I´m already waiting for spring. It was so nice to see how vines started to grow. Next summer I might get some grapes so my actual meaning of growing vines might get to the next stage.

3 months past

2009-07-22T01:26:00.000-07:00

The real good June was almoust a dream start for beginner wine grower. July has been much more finnish style. Weather has changed a lot and day temperature has rised barely to 20 celcius degrees.

My vine sprouts have grown quite nicely. In Finland august is usually the best summer month. Days and nights are warm. Some thunder stroms and rains happens but basicly weather is great is you compere it to other months. If I get any harvest next year august weather is crucial to get grapes ripe.

Siegerrebe has been growing fast. The tallest one reached about 160 cm high. Some plants have made a bush out of them selves and some are just growing high. Solaris has been more careful than Siegerrebe. I think Solaris plants are making its root strong first. For next year I hope that both are strong and ready because I need both to pollinate each other.

One of my favourites

2009-07-15T12:07:00.000-07:00

It is long wainting for a farmer. Good news is that all my plants are alive. The two Solaris I was about to change for Madeleine Angwine has come alive and sprouts are coming out.

Here is a nice story about one of my favourites white ones. It is actually first wine I have tasted.That time it was winegar in my opinion (age 13) but today I feel it has the good basics of cheap wine: Smooth taste with clear amount of acids. Flowering taste, not too light. I wuold mix this Italian girl with good greeg salade and fresh sword fish. Lots of wine, garlic and Feta cheese.

The story of Est! Est!! Est!!!

" In the 1111 the Bavarian (back in the Bavaria area again) Bishop Johannes Defuc was travelling to Rome under the instructions of the emperor Henry V. Being a coinnaisseur of wine, sent his servant, Martin, ahead to find lodgings where the wine was of a sufficiently high quality to please his palate. His instructions were to mark the word est! ("it is") at the entrance of every inn where wine was suitable or even est! est!! if the wine was of a particularly high quality. In Montefiascone his servant found the wine so good that he felt obliged to write the word est three times."

1 month after planting

2009-06-23T23:46:00.000-07:00

I feels like ages, but my vines have been on ground only four and half weeks. There has been great progress (I think) and 13 of 15 plants are growing. I´m still hopefull for the two but if they are not giving any signs of living in few weeks I´ll change them to Madeleine Angwine plants that I did not get on june. There is some pictures on the side of the new growing Solaris and Siegerrebe. Solaris is the one with sharp shape leafs and Siegerrebe has a bit like oak leafs.

My risk paid off even there was few subzero nights on Finland at the end of june. This might be a problem in following springs, but I´ll prapere for it. Bigger problem might be rabbits. My yards is on open field so fresh sprouts may interest them. Good thing is that there are more than three hundred other garden yards that are open for animals so few rabbits ain´t crusial problem yet.

Last days have been very hot 23-26 dergees. I have given some water to the plants even vines normally don´t ned any spacial watering. New sprout have quite small root and open ground with 19 hours daylight can be very drying. They water vines also in Chile.

It has literally started

2009-05-11T04:56:00.000-07:00

I planted my vines last week. May has been so warm and days has been full of light so I cuoldn´t stop my eagerness anymore. I hope that my choise wasn´t wrong but every farmer has to make decisions by reading the weather. If weather stays as good as it has been last month my wines will get excelent start. next two months are best growing season for vine because sun is up almoust 19 hours a day. (I´m not kidding). Vine is a light plant so it will be interesting to see how does it grow. The "wild vine" which is grown in Finland as a decoration plant can grow 5-6metres on summer time.

When I planted my vines I used some chicken and horse manure and some ash to fertilize. Actually ash it to get other fertilizers abrosbe to the ground. The ph was before manuring 6,8 which was very good for the grapes I chose.

You can see from the picture that some sprouts are already coming out of the Solaris vine. I´ll have spring time opening this week with some Est Est Est to celebrate the real beginning of my experiment.

Choosing the grapes.

2009-04-27T04:23:00.000-07:00

Next stage of my project is choosing the grapes. Actually there is not much to choose because there are not many grapes that survive here. And when I want just white grapes I have 4-5 different grapes from to choose.

The main grape for will be Solaris. It is quite interesting double crossing from Merzling (Riesling&Pinot Gris) and Gm6493 (Zarya Severa & Muscat Ottonel) It is quite new mix breeded 1975 in Germany. Solaris is more hybrid than pure vitis Vinifera. Solaris is an early ripening variety with good resistance against fungal diseases and frost. It gives wines which have fruity and perfumed aromas with hints of banana and hazelnuts, with medium acidity. It has been grown successfully in Norway so I´m very hopefull.

The second grape is the "victory wine" Siegerrebe which is german crossing from Madeleine Angwine and Gewurtstraminer. The vine is suited to colder climates as bud-burst is late and fruit ripening is very early. Despite high must weights the wine tends to be very low in acid. The finished wine has an intense aroma reminiscient of muscat and tends to be used in blending than a varietal wine, however the flavour is reminiscent of Gewurtstraminer May Siegerrebe wines are high in extract and yellow-green to golden yellow in colour.

The third and only pure vine is Madeleine Angevine. This grape is more a test than realistic hope to get fruits. Madeleine Angevine makes an attractive fruity wine with a flowery nose, similar to an Alsatian Pinot Blanc. It is crisp, acid and dry. Retailers plants died during winter so I´m not yet betting on Angevines surviving in Finland but it has been grown long time in Cold climates. If there is a chance to get french lady in my garden I´ll try.

My total amount will be 20 plants (10 Solaris 5 Siegerrebe and 5 Madeleine Angevine) I´ll wait 2 weeks more before planting. May has been very warm but temperature is time to time getting close to zero at night time. It ain´t easy to be farmer in Finland.

From the scratch

2009-04-15T04:04:00.000-07:00

I´m really starting from the scratch. I took me some while to find out, was Stuart Pigott´s idea(read my first blog) just a line that didn´t have any real life matter. After some research I found out that there was some finish people who taught same way. Northern location should not be barrier to grow wine. It has been done every where else.

To get some base for my interest I bought some books about wine growing. Wine magazine (Viinilehti) recommended Jamie Goode´s "From vine to Glass" but better knowlegde I got from"Growing wine in Finland" by Juha Karvonen. Local knowlegde beats the author in this case.

After gathering some basic facts became reality: I needed a place where I could grow my Wine. Helps came from the city. Helsinki city rents small (100m2) garden places for citizens where they can grow vegetables etc. Why not wine? And it was cheap 33,00€ / year.

It became almoust too easy when I found that there is a company called Omenakumpu that was selling wine plants for northern atmosphere. Company is still very much testing but if they are so am I. I think this was the point when there was no return.

It is good to have basics before start but I was a bit early. I still have wait for 4-6 weeks before I can plant wine. In Finland temperature might go under zero in May and first year plants a very fragile for cold weather.

But it is a start. Sony Company started it´s business after first world war by selling buckets that where made out of cannon ammunition shells. So why me hurry?

My northern wine exposure

2009-04-15T02:13:00.000-07:00

I got my idea for this experiment from Stuart Pigott´s column in finnish wine magazine(Viinilehti 06/2008). Pigott was telling about his experiences from Geisenheim´s wine school where he is studying for next two years. He was telling about his collegue who is from Regenburg, Bavaria. Very cold area for wine growing. If you can grow wine there why not in southern Finland, was the question Pigott finished his column.

Yes, why not? This blog is about my attempt to make wine from finnish wine grapes that I have growed myself. I have rented a small plot of land (1 are / 41 acres) which will be my wine garden for next few years. If I´m lucky I´ll taste my own wine somewhere spring time 2011.

I´m trying to detail all phases and even little things that may effect to the result so if there is someone else who has interest to grow wine 60 degrees northern lattitude this blog may someday be useful.

"Adventure starts from your own yard. Literaly"