Happy Memorial Day!

I’m taking the day off from blogging to participate in the Memorial Weekend Wine Tasting that happens in Oregon and Southwest Washington. The Rusty Grape Vineyards has a new blackberry wine, orange Muscat, and Pinot Gris out for me to try. I’ll have new posts for up in June.

Book Review: Wine Playing Cards

On the last day of the 2010 WineMaker Magazine Conference in Stevenson, WA, there was an hour between the last session and the dinner and awards ceremony. Being in the Skamania Lodge, I wandered around a little bit until I found the gift shop. There, I discovered that they were selling a red wine deck of cards and a white wine deck of cards for $8.95 each. While I found that to be a bit expensive, I figured I could use them to play solitaire with, or stop and read them and learn more about the grapes that go into wines. I also figured it could be a conversation piece sometime.

These cards were printed by Inkstone Design, Inc in 2003. The more popular varieties of wine grapes take the ace or king cards, and I was amazed that there are 52 red and 52 white grape varieties, as you only hear of a handful of breeds. Each card talks about the grape’s origins, characteristics, and gives a suggested food to pair it with.

I did find one error in them, which is amazing given my limited knowledge of grape wines. The red wine ace of hearts is the Cabernet Sauvignon, which puts its origins as, “A cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc grapes…” The white wine king of diamonds is the Sauvignon Blanc, which says, “In 1997 it was discovered to be a natural mutation of the Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.” This confuses me, as it sounds like “Which came first – the chicken or the egg?”

There are probably better books out there on the topic of wine grapes and the different varieties, but those would be books that I wouldn’t really be interested in. These playing cards are small, fit into your pocket, and versatile, as I could actually play games with them rather than just read them. I could also see someone using them like flashcards. Overall, I find them useful and educational.

My New Eco-Lawn

A few months ago, I read a local news story about a woman who planted an eco friendly lawn. It was a grass seed mix that was developed by the Oregon State University. “The blend requires less water consumption, no chemical fertilizers and needs less frequent mowing. This means less time and money spent on lawn care even as it stays lush and green… This summer, as her neighbor’s lawns leaned toward a brownish tint despite frequently watering, [hers] stayed green. This was due to the mixture’s variety of drought tolerant plants. She also has found less moss since using the eco-lawn mix.” Unfortunately, this was news worthy because here Home Owner’s Association was making her remove it. I tell you, there is nothing that makes people want something more than telling them they can’t have it, and I wanted this lawn (luckily, there is no HOA for me).  This was good advertisement for eco friendly lawns.

The mix in this story was called Fleur-de-Lawn made by Hobbs and Hopkins LTD. They used things like English Daisy and clover instead of pure grass. The clover puts nitrogen back into the soil, acting like a natural fertilizer, and is more drought resistant than grass.

Local News Agency Story on Eco-Lawns: http://www.protimelawnseed.com/pages/testimonials

While looking for this mix, I came across Earth Turf, which also uses clover to minimize fertilizer use, chemicals, and watering.

Washington State University King County Extension put out a posting about eco lawns, which also had a link to Seattle Public Utilities’s thoughts on ecoturf . Both recommended the Fleur-de-Lawn, and also suggested Albany, Oregon’s Nichols Garden Nursery (whom I like because of vegetable and herb seed varieties) and their ecology lawn mixtures. Nichol’s and Fleur-de-Lawn both use clover, wild English daisies, yarrow, and baby blue eyes.

Just for comparison, I looked up the Scotts Turf Builder Pacific Northwest Mix. For starters, I have no idea what kind of grass it was using, so that was frustrating. It also claimed to reduce moss like the Fleur-de-lawn testimony story, and it needs less water to get started due to the seeds being covered. It is much cheaper per pound, but requires more seed per square foot. In fact, for half the price of 1 lb of Fleur de Lawn, you can get three pounds of Scotts, but it only covers half as much lawn, so you end up paying the same amount as Fleur de Lawn to get the same coverage. I also figure Scotts will cost me more in the end due to water, fertilizer, gas to mow it, and my time it takes to maintain it.

Thing is, we will have a beautiful, green lawn that will be soft to walk on bare footed without all the work and money!

Ironic Lawn Care

My recent newsletter from the Home Orchard Society also included a story about God and St. Francis discussing lawn care, though this conversation could be with a foreigner  unfamiliar with our customs. While I’m not quit this extreme in my views about lawns, I have been arguing for some time now that I don’t need a perfect lawn, and might rip out some of it in favor of a garden instead. Also, the pollution involved in mowing and the chemicals involved is horrible. Anyway, the story goes:

GOD: Francis, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there? What happened to the dandelions, violets, thistle and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect, no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honey bees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But all I see are these green rectangles.
ST. FRANCIS: It’s the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers “weeds” and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.
GOD: Grass? But it’s so boring. It’s not colorful. It doesn’t attract butterflies, birds and bees, only grubs and sod worms. It’s temperamental with temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?
ST. FRANCIS: Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.
GOD: The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy.
ST. FRANCIS: Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it-sometimes twice a week.
GOD: They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?
ST. FRANCIS: Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.
GOD: They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?
ST. FRANCIS: No Sir. Just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.
GOD: Now let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?
ST. FRANCIS: Yes, Sir.
GOD: These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.
ST. FRANCIS: You aren’t going to believe this Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.
GOD: What nonsense. At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. Plus, as they rot, the leaves form compost to enhance the soil. It’s a natural circle of life.
ST. FRANCIS: You better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.
GOD: No. What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter and to keep the soil moist and loose?
ST. FRANCIS: After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.
GOD: And where do they get this mulch?
ST. FRANCIS: They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.
GOD: Enough. I don’t want to think about this anymore. St. Catherine, you’re in charge of the arts. What movie have they scheduled for us tonight?”
ST. CATHERINE: “Dumb and Dumber”, Lord. It’s a really stupid movie about…..
GOD: Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis.

Moss

I’ve been gardening a lot recently, trying to get our property in tip top shape to grow a garden and plant my apple trees. This is all so that I have things to ferment.

When we bought the place, it had a moss lawn. There is no grass, just moss. Growing up on a farm, I was taught that if you have moss in the fields, something was wrong. Moss only grows where it has no competition. So if the grass dies off and moss comes in, then something needs to be done to encourage grass to grow there. Sure, the moss could be killed, but that does not mean that the grass would return, or if it is reseeded, it does not mean it will grow. So the key is really finding out why the grass died out.

With my new house, the back yard was completely moss. How it got to be that way is pretty simple: there were a lot of evergreen that blocked out the sunlight, killing the grass. Since then, we have cut down a few trees, and we thought that the moss would die back with that much sunlight on it now, but it isn’t really.

Thing is, we didn’t use moss killer on our lawn because we want to plant apple trees and a garden, so we don’t want chemicals like that entering our food. We ended up sort of kind of removing it with lime and hard work. The lime will also hopefully bring the soil back a little more basic after having acidic pine needles everywhere.

We didn’t toss the moss out, either, but put it in a raised bed that only contained berries. If it composts down, great. If it starts growing, no worries.  I like reusing things.

2010 WineMaker Magazine Conference

This last Friday and Saturday, I attended the 2010 WineMaker Magazine Conference in Stevenson, WA. I attended for several reasons. I make fruit wine, making cider is very similar to making fruit wine, and it was so close I felt I shouldn’t pass it up.

Admittedly, I was a little out of place. Most of the people there were in there 50s or older, and probably two thirds of the attendants were male. However, these people had a wealth of experience, and I did go there to learn.

The group of people was a mixture – some were hobbyists like me, and some actually had their winery license. Though, when asked how long they had been making wine, most respond in seasons rather than years. After a bit, I got used to responding that I make cider, and that I had never fermented a grape in my life. After some of the classes, like making sparkling wine from wine kits, I might actually try now.

I attended classes on malolatic fermentation, troubleshooting wine problems, and yeast health. They had two tasting sessions, where the first one served us the same wine fermented with different yeasts to see how the yeast affects flavor. The second session was about the sensory of tasting.

Most of the speakers submitted their power point presentations a head of time, allowing the Conference to print them out and put them in a binder for us. That allowed us just to scribble notes rather than try to jot down everything. In addition, every presentation was projected though a PA system, which allows the organizers to record each session and then sell the entire conference recordings for $20, which is a good price if you could not attend the session and you wanted to make more sense out of the presentation power point print offs.

During lunch, they had signs on the tables like Northwest, Merlot, kit wines, and more. The idea was that if you sat at that table, then you were interested in that topic, possibly making the conversation flow easier. I sat at the Fruit Wine Maker table both days, and I met some brew supply store owners, one guy who allowed us to try his peach/plum wine, and a fellow guy interested in cider making.

Next year, the conference is moving to Santa Barbara, CA, so I will not be attending next year. However, if it came back around to this region, I would go back.

Book Review: He Said Beer, She Said Wine

Granted, I’m not fond of any beer that has hops, though I’m not really a grape wine drinker, either, but He Said Beer, She Said Wine by Sam Calagione and Marine Old has given my husband lots of amusement. It was given to us as a Christmas present, and we use it to try and develop our palattes, especially for wine.

Calagione is actually the founder of Dogfish Head Brewing in Delaware, and Old is a wine sommelier friend of his. They would get into debates about what drink pairs better with a given food, which went from their own little private competitions to using the Dogfish Head Pub to host tastings with secret ballots. To their surprise, they got about a 50/50 vote, and it wasn’t based on gender.

The book goes though some basic principles on tasting wine and beer before it gets to the food pairings. About six foods from cheese, vegetables, sandwiches, pizza and pasta, spicy food, shellfish, poultry, meat, fruit desserts, and other desserts are presented. Old goes though and talks about them before offering her suggested wine pairing for that particular dish, and then Calagione has the same opportunity with beer for the same dish.

Most of these dishes are fairly common, which makes it much easier to concentrate on the alcohol rather than worrying about finding that particular food. For example, she recommends a Cave Spring Riesling paired with Kung Pao Chicken, while he recommends an Austrian Doppelbock such as Schloss Eggenberg Urbock 23⁰. Thing is, while the Kung Pao Chicken might be easy to find, rationality makes it a little harder to find the alcohol, so my husband and I would find another Riesling and Doppelbock that might be close to what they are describing.

At the back of the book, they do provide a few recipes to help you have your own beer vs wine tasting parties. While we have not had the parties, we have cooked up a few of the dishes.

In our experience with this book, the wine pairings always seem to work with each dish even though we made substitutions. The beer aspect of this seems to be a bit trickier, as sometimes it is better than the wine pairing, sometimes it ties with the wine pairing, and sometimes it just doesn’t go with the food it was paired with, leaving wine as the clear winner. In fact, my husband recently made the spicy Gulf Shrimp recipe again, which pairs with a Domaine Longval Tavel Rosé wine and a Moortgat Duvel beer. This time, he didn’t even want to bother with the beer, and instead just stick to the regional Chateau Ste. Michelle Dry Rosé we had found. But our previous cooking of the Classic Beer Tenderloin paired with Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon wine and Chimay Preière beer left us at a draw.

Cider Review by Gary Vaynerchuk: Farnum Hill

Normally, I like to give my opinion and maybe I will link to others at the end, but I try not to let others sway my opinions. However, while I do follow Farnum Hill Cider in cyber world in which they have a large presence as an American cider producer, I am unable to acquire and taste their product on the West Coast. Therefore, when a video blog by Gary Vaynerchuk reviewing Farnum Hill Cider resurfaced, I thought I would make an exception and post it.

I hope you enjoy it.

Gary Vaynerchuk reviews Farnum Hill Kingston Black Cider Reserve, Farmhouse Cider, and Extra-Dry Cider on March 10, 2008 on Wine Library.

Cider Drinks

Yesterday, I talked about cider black and tans. Today, I will turn my attention to some of the cider cocktail recipes I have managed to collect.

JB Worcester UK posted on the Cider Workshop a calvados brandy and hard cider drink which he called “frogs nose,” and claimed it is better than pommeau.

Crispin Cider, always looking to promote their product, has posted several recipes.

• They have a section called the Lazy Bartender, which are basic drinks in which cider replaced an ingredient.
• They have another section called Creative Cocktails, including an area to submit your own cocktail made with cider.
• On their blog, they posted the Kesler Ginger Crisp, made with gin, Crispin, ginger, ice, and lemon. The blog also is where the recipe for the Eastern Saint Cocktail Recipe, which is ginger flavored vodka, St. Germain, and their artisanal reserve Crispin Cider Saint.

Other sources of cider, both sweet or hard, drink recipes include:

• http://gonewengland.about.com/cs/recipes/a/aaciderdrinks.htm, which includes some non-alcoholic recipes
• Martha Stewart’s Pear and Sparkling Cider Cocktails, made with whiskey
• http://www.sheckys.com/newyorkcity/nightlife/articles/cider_in_the_house_fall_s_cider_cocktails_6567.asp
• http://cocktails.about.com/od/cocktailrecipes/a/apple_cocktails.htm , which includes apple spirit cocktails such as apple brandy or apple infusions.

Cider Black & Tan

In the beer world, a black and tan is two beers of different color and densities poured in such a way that they do not mix, but instead remained layered. A tan beer, such as a lager, is usually poured first, and then a dark beer such as Guinness is poured over a spoon into the glass, which causes it to sit on top of the tan beer. It is quite lovely to look at.

Recently, I have discovered that there are cider versions of black and tans, in which the cider is usually poured first. The most common is the Snakebite, which is cider and lager.  The lesser known varieties include the Hummingbird, Black & Velvet, and the specialized Oregon Hop Blossom. The Hummingbird is a pear cider and stout combo. The Black & Velvet is cider with Guinness. Wandering Aengus, based out of Salem, OR, told me that the Oregon Hop Blossom is an Oregon Cider paired with an Oregon IPA. Is it just me, or is the Oregon Hop Blossom a bit of a marketing ploy?

Speaking of marketing ploys, Crispin Cider has a list of many more cider black & tans using their products. They have the 3 Velveteers, which is Crispin cider paired with either an amber, stout (usually Guinness), or cream ale. They also have Snakes & Lagers, which is again Crispin cider, the snake, paired with different beers. They have the classic Snakebite, Snakelight (light beer), Snakelight Lime (light beer with a lime wedge), Brown Adder (Brown Ale), Sidewinder (Mexican beer with a lime wedge), or a Rattlesnake (Mexican Amber with a lime wedge). Check out their blends, or at least take a look at the lovely pictures.