FALL HAS COME IN NZ

Well, today is sad for us as we pack up and fly back to Tenn for the NZ winter. OUr wine is now fermenting in the barrels- in the photo you can see me siphoning off a bit to sample. It is not tasting soo good just now as it needs to settle and age for a year in our French oak barrels. Someone has to taste is so why not me?????

The other shot shows our golden orange Malbec leaves which are starting to drop off now. Early reports from all our Matakana Wine Growers membership is that it was a mixed season. Most all the local whites were excellent but some reds did not fare too well this year as there was a wet week just as they were ripening. For us we did well with really nice Cab Franc grapes but only average for our Malbec. Now we will just have to wait and see how the wine ages with time.

If you are reading this in NZ, we wish you a happy and warm and dry winter. If you are one of our US readers you know it it stormy and already pretty hot in the south. Our son in Washington DC told us last night on the phone that it was supposed to get to 98 F. in the DC area this weekend. Man!!! That is hot for so early in the US summer. Oh well, with my creaky joints the hot humid weather will be good for me. I will surely be sweating when I do my next post. Do remember that more and more evidence suggests that red wine is good for the brain and arteries so even in this warmer weather do drink a glass of red wine daily. Hawks Nest is of course what I suggest to all my patients. (could that be considered a "conflict of interest"??? Never!!!!

More soon from Nashvegas.

Dr Jim and Miss Sandra