Vol. 10 No. 4-2022 Palm Sunday National Farm Animal Day Holy Week 2022/04/10
The Glenora Gazette
Est. 13 April 2994
The sky is cloudy over the vineyards of Glenora and the shores of Seneca on this Palm Sunday morning. The temperature is a chilly 33 degrees but it feels like 27 degrees due to the wind which is coming from the west at 6 miles per hour. Lake temperatures: Keuka – 41 degrees which is two degrees cooler than it was one year ago on this date.
In the vineyards: There is a Hodge-Podge of activities taking place there consisting of last minute (late) pruning, trellis repairs, and some early application of pre-emergent herbicides. The trellis work is noted by the tapping sounds of the post driving equipment (mechanical – which is much different than the 16-pound post maul that was operated – by hand – during the editor’s early vineyard days). While most are not liking these cool and damp days, we are liking them as they keep the grape buds dormant thus reducing the risk of bud damage due to a cold weather snap. We are hearing and reading reports of significant bud damage to grapes and stone fruits in parts of Europe – a result of early bud breaks due to very warm temperatures early in the season and then cold temperatures falling into the mid 20’s.
In the cellar: The production team is reporting that the new sparking wine equipment is working very well and as a result has increased the number of bottles that can be disgorged, dosage, corked, and wine hooded on a daily basis. In addition to the sparkling wine production the bottling line is busy as well. Lots of custom work and this week the bottling of our 2021 sweet Rose’. The wine is different from the lemming (writers, somms , podcasters’) driven production of Dry Rose’. Our Sweet Rose’ is a result of requests made by our customers – who generally are not lemming influenced.
Winemaker Edward gave us reports from his participation in the B.E.V. – NY and Eastern Wine Exposition. Lots of information was gleaned from both conferences. Since the B.E.V.-NY conference was held virtually it allowed for participants to easily take part from across the country and the world. Another benefit was that participants could take part in selected programs without having to attend a in-person three-day conference.
Awards: Steve DiFrancesco, Glenora Winemaker Emeritus, received the Life Time Achievement Award presented at the Eastern Wine Exposition. It was noted that Steve was the first person in his position to receive that award. Our congratulations to Steve. Neighbor John Martini received the Jim Trezise Lifetime Achi event award presented by the New York Wine and Grape Foundation. Congratulations to John. It goes without saying (but we will) that both Steve and John have made many significant contributions to the Finger Lakes, NY, and US wine industry over the decades. Brittany Gibson who is the Executive Director of the Seneca Lake Wine Trail received the Foundation’s Phyllis Feder Unity Award. In addition to her three years of leadership on the Wine Trail she has been active in the industry for many years – Congratulations to Brittany. It should be noted that all three of these awardees are associated with the Seneca Lake Wine Trail!!
This coming Wednesday, April 13th the Glenora Gazette will start its 29th year of publication. For the most part, with very few exceptions (mostly mechanical issues) it has been published weekly. There is no question it is the longest continuous weekly winery publication in the Finger Lakes, and most likely in NYS and perhaps the US. There is lots of Glenora, Seneca Lake, Finger Lakes history in those articles, perhaps a Pulitzer Prize is in order.
Next Sunday, Easter Sunday, we will be hosting the Dundee Area Council of Churches Easter Sunrise Service at Glenora. It is held in Veraisons so attendees will be warm and dry no matter the weather. The service starts at 6:30 and Troop 25 of the Boy Scouts will be serving a pancake breakfast immediately following the service.
News briefs: We will be announcing the names of the artists that will be appearing at the Jazz Greats at Glenora this coming week, Easter Brunch will be served at Glenora, the Mother’s Day menu will be released this coming week, the 2021 Pinot Gris was released yesterday (Saturday) it joined Sauvignon Blanc, Black Diamond, and Yellow Cab in the recent release wine category. Barrel Fermented Chardonnay will be back in the racks at some point during the next few weeks.
It is Pasta and Wine Weekend on the Wine Trail. So far it has been a “Steady Eddy” type of an event. There were just over 700 tickets sold (a sold out event). The next Trail event is Smokin Summer Cookoff, June 10-12 only 500 tickets to be sold and over half of those have already been sold. We may be offering a special BBQ item in addition to what is being listed on the trail’s promotional materials!!
Thought for the week: Is it Broken
If you’re not satisfied with what you think is happening, it might be worth recalibrating.
