Characters of Crush!

Derek (aka Dbrock) and Jerry on the Mound...

He might look lazy here...

A little help from the competition...

Hard to explain this one, have to ask Jess yourself.

And the quote of the day "Rikki works?" A most flattering picture.

Resident Alien Jerry adding some humor.

With a little help from vin diesel. Literally.

Foch earrings, anyone?

Marechal Foch Harvest 2009!

The "crush" in action!

Look at these little beauties! All JTV grapes are hand harvested by volunteers into lugs like this.

So pretty.

Collection time for full lugs, backbreaking work, for sure!

Grapes are weighed for historical data purposes.

On the Crushpad! Foch being destemmed and crushed.

The crushing mechanism in action.

The auger that feeds the grapes to the crush gears.

The crushed up Foch as it settles into it's fermentation tank.

The stems - the by-product of the destemming process that become compost.

The JTV Cast of Characters - 2009 Edition!

Harvest is ON!

We've made it through another year and our harvest season has officially begun. Drop by the vineyard the weekends of September 26/7 and October 3/4 to see harvest operations in full swing. From harvesting (picking) to crushing and pressing, we do it all right here in our expanded winery location. It's our busiest time of year so be warned - we're still New Hampshire's best kept secret but the secret is getting out! Happy Harvest!

Harvest Approaches!

The time of year is upon us - the grapes are ripening slowly in the warm New Hampshire sun. Our bird management program (running nets over the grapes) helps keep these delicious little morsels from being bird food and not wine. The vineyard management program has kept our vines strong, healthy, with very little disease, so we're particularly excited to be approaching our upcoming harvest weekends. Come on out and see us, its a perfect time of year for a visit!

Jewell Towne and Cabot Cheese - a perfect New England Combination!

Summertime Bounty

Who says you can't grow grapes in New England? Look at these beauties!

Our vines, after being drenched in rain for what seemed like an endless rain-filled early Summer, took a terrific rebound. In fact, the water inspired vigor - almost too much vigor - as they developed at lightning spped once the warm rays of the sun returned.

One issue with the rain related to pollination and fruit set. You can see different size berries in the above cluster - some were simply pollinated and began to develop earlier than others. Rain washes pollen to the ground so it takes longer for the fruit to set. This can, if not recognized, allow for some underripe berries to enter the mix and add green-ness (or bitterness) to the wines. The trick is to ensure that all of the berries on the cluster are at acceptable ripeness levels before harvest.