The fall crush is upon us at the winery!  We harvested the Pinot Noir grapes a week ago and the Syrah and Riesling will be coming off the vine in short order. 

How do we know when the grapes are ready to harvest?  The leading indicator is the amount of sugar in the grape juice, as measured in units of brix.  To measure the sugar, we walk down every other row of the vineyard and pick one grape from every fourth plant.  These grapes are dumped into a food mill, ground up, and a bit of the resulting juice is poured into a refractometer.   A reading in the low- to mid-twenties means it is time to think about picking.

But it isn’t all work on the farm in the fall.  This past weekend we celebrated the harvest with our Fall Crush celebration.  Thanks to all who attended for your great participation!  With U-pick pumpkins, U-pick apples, U-press cider, and U-stomp grapes there was something for everyone to enjoy.  (Oh, and yes, we did a little wine tasting as well.)

Speaking of winetasting, last month the guys from Wine Press Northwest came to Chelan to check out all the buzz happening around the local wine scene, especially since the establishment of the new AVA.  They had good things to say!  Their write-up is well worth the read.  Their website also has numerous video interviews with local winemakers, which give a good intro to the wine scene here.

While in Chelan, the editors conducted a thorough “terroir tasting,” sampling wine at all the area wineries, looking at  how soil types, climate, vintage, viticulture and winemaking practices play out in the bottle.  We are proud to say they noted our 2006 Pinot Noir as “Outstanding” and also recommended our 2007 Riesling and 2006 Syrah.  Here’s their report:

Tunnel Hill Winery 2006 Pinot Noir, Columbia Valley, $25.  The Evans family, a four-generation farming operation on the south shore, flashes its skill as growers and winemakers with this bottling. It’s a lighter color in the glass than most, and there’s a brightness to the aromatics with strawberry freezer jam, cherry vanilla cola, caramel and cocoa powder. Get ready for an incredibly easy sip of juicy Bing cherries, root beer, cranberries and more cocoa. Food-friendly acidity makes this approachable from almost every angle. (13.7% alc., 100 cases)

Tunnel Hill Winery 2007 Estate Riesling, Columbia Valley, $15. Harvest came late in the season, Oct. 27, and helped produce aromatics of baked apple, dried apricots and drawn butter. Here’s a softer, easy-drinking style (2% residual sugar) with tasty Asian pear, apple, 7Up and pink grapefruit flavors. (11% alc., 250 cases)

Tunnel Hill Winery 2006 Syrah, Columbia Valley, $30.   Here’s the family’s first estate-built Syrah, and it is more food-friendly than most around the state because of its low alcohol and lofty acidity. Aromas center on blue and red fruits - currants, raspberries and blueberries - joined by a hint of smoke, leather, cracked pepper and fresh-baked brioche. The palate seems focused on cranberry, racy acidity and orange pekoe tea tannin. Enjoy with braised meats or lamb. (13.2% alc., 50 cases)

Big thanks to everyone who came out for our 4th annual Taste of Sunshine!  We had a sold out crowd and a great time hosting the party.   Freda Ponce ( seen tasting tomatoes in the photo below) and Ryan Schmitten of Gaia Earth Farm in Malaga took away the half case of wine after winning the Tomato Taste-Off with their “Momotaro” variety.  The farm walk provided a great warm-up to a scrumptious meal of farm-fresh dishes.  And the Sunshine Revue Band may have given birth to a couple of local stars.  (One person in the winery thought she was hearing Elvis!)  You can watch the entertainment on YouTube.    Finally, many thanks to our great staff for going the extra mile to help out with the evening’s activities.  We are looking forward to 2010!                   

“I felt like I was in Italy!” – Teresa Farrell, Owner Bear Foods

For more photos, check out our facebook album.

This thing is going to be huge. Massive. Amazing. I’ve heard it billed as the biggest local food event of the season. Scores of the freshest ingredients. Cases of the richest wines. All assembled with artful care and plated beside the falling waters at Tunnel Hill Winery. For some of you, eating locally has become habit. Others are newer into the fold. Whichever group you fall into, this will be an evening you will treasure.

If you have ever wanted to know a tomato, our Taste of Sunshine begins with a taste-off of these summertime gems. We’ll have the big beef, the multi-colored heirlooms, the cherry tomatoes, and in an effort to explore the terroir of tomato production, we’ve invited other regional farmers to submit their tomatoes for the tasting. It’s a bit of a contest. And you’re the judge.

With the votes cast, we’ll follow veggie grower Rachel up the hill for a field walk through the vineyards, orchards, and veggie fields. There you will see the birthplace of your dinner. The earth from whence the feast has come. Check out the tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant in the 100-foot high-tunnel hoop house, sample the weighty Syrah darkening on the vine, and breathe in the fragrant air of the peach grove. This is how food is grown. This is where it all comes from.

And where it all goes is not far. Back at the winery, our chefs Adrianne Young and Erik Cannella will greet us with a dinner fit for a king. Morroccan goat stew. Grilled zucchini, eggplant, leeks, and peppers. Blanched green beans tossed with mint. Green salad and carrot tossed with melon dressing. Try pairing the menu with our estate ‘07 Pinot Noir, or the new ’08 Riesling, or a little of both. In either case, be sure to leave room for a slice of rustic peach tart for dessert along with a cup of locally roasted Blue Star coffee. For you newbies to local food, this evening could prove revolutionary.

And every revolution has its songs of rally and charge. So while dusk falls we’ll offer both—in the lightest of humor of course. We are calling it the Sunshine Farm Revue Band. James on guitar, Guy on keyboards, Renae on the washboard, Daniel on vocals perhaps?? Friends and relatives may be able to catch this bit of local talent later on YouTube, but nothing will replace the priceless hilarity of seeing this act live. Everyone knows farming is hard work. You won’t want to miss this lighter side of your local food providers!

Tickets for Taste of Sunshine ’09 are on sale currently at Tunnel Hill and the Market and may well sell out. Be sure to get yours before they’re gone! The Fourth Annual Taste of Sunshine ’09—huge, massive, amazing—oh yeah, and quite tasty.