More Frozen Fog

We thought we might get to go out and do some vineyard work this week. We did do a little last weekend- not pruning yet as it's still too early. But since then, the weather hasn't been what we wanted. We got about 8 inches of snow here on Thursday and Friday. (We managed to get the Prius stuck, but got it out pretty quickly too.) Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day in the snow, but today the frozen fog was back. It makes for beautiful pictures, but I want the sun!

Dave and Jeff worked in the cellar this week, finalizing some of the blends for the new wines. We're really excited about them, and would be thinking about bottling soon, but we need our road to dry out so we can get the bottles delivered. Cars do ok, but the semis have some issues, especially with turning around. Still, it's exciting to think about the spring releases.

The tasting room is slow, but we do get some business every week, so we're still keeping it open Saturdays. If nothing else, it gives us a lot of time to catch up on the paperwork and cleaning and organizing that we might not get to otherwise. And we are starting to put together more plans for spring. I'm ready!

The annual meeting of the Kansas Grape Growers and Winemakers Association was this past weekend in Emporia, Kansas. The record cold temperatures, snow and wind kept some people (including some of the presenters) away, but we headed out across the tundra to spend some time with the experts and also with good friends and colleagues.

There were sessions on grape growing, wine making and marketing, and I think we picked up some really good information. We took Jeff along for the first time, and he got to meet a lot of people. The instructors didn't intimidate him, and we all had a good time talking to them. (We did notice him playing games on his iphone during some of the sessions. Clearly his parents don't intimidate him either.)

Our Red Barrel Reserve was served with the main course at the banquet, and paired well with the beef tenderloin and crabmeat dish with which it was served. We were proud!

The most amazing development of the weekend in my opinion was when they elected Dave as the Vice President of the organization for the upcoming year. Not that he isn't capable. And he certainly has a lot to offer. But those of us who know Dave know he doesn't do meetings! It's going to be an interesting year!