CHIEF

1996-2009

Sweet Dreams, Mr. Soup

After a rainy day that included chewing an entire peanut butter-basted rawhide bone (treat of treats!) and being hugged and petted and kissed by all of us over and over, it was time to let Chief go. After many months of struggling with a backside that wouldn’t cooperate, we knew we couldn’t let him suffer any more. So Chief De Vito – Sir Smoochee, Mr. Soup, My Main Man – is now over the Rainbow Bridge.

Chief came to us at age 7, and we were blessed with every day of the 6 years we shared together. Chief gave and gave and gave and gave some more. He was the epitome of lovable. It was a hard-hearted person who wouldn’t be seduced by his joyfulness when he was around. Of course, he also asked. And asked, and asked some more (where food was involved he would not give up). We love you, Chief. You will never be forgotten.

- Dominique DeVito

Chief, Have a good time in Heaven - Dawson DeVito

AND TWO MORE MAKES NINE!!

PAPERBIRCH WINS TWO MEDALS AT

NEW YORK STATE FAIR

WINE COMPETITION 2009

Our Paperbirch Highland Fine Ruby and our Paperbirch Palladian White won a pair of Bronzes at the 2009 New York State Fair Wine Competition.

That brings our total medal count for 2009 to 9 Medals!

Six from Hudson Valley Wine & grape

One from Dallas Mornign News

Two from New York State Fair

Here's where you can see all the results:

http://www.nysfair.org/competitions/documents/2009CommercialWine-Results.pdf

REVIVING A VINEYARD

In May of 2008 we told you about an old vineyard we were taking over and working to renew. The Link to that story is below. But unfortunately, the vineyard was struck by a freak hail storm (as many other farms were struck that year) and almost all the fruit was lost. And many vines subsequently died.

Well - We're Baaaack!

Ralph, our general manager, took to his riding mower, and we're got some field workers who are going to clip this thing to within an inch of it's life, and we're going to make something of it this year.

At the very least it's good, if not for a dessert wine unto itself, for next year, it's sherry that'll go into our ever growing solera, and you'll taste it as sherry in three to five years!

When Ralph and I got there, the weeds were as toll as the wines and trellis themselves. But man prevailed in this battle of man vs. nature. It's really starting to look good. This was hard work. Lots of humidity, bugs, tall, scratchy grasses, loud hot noise from the mower, an hot baking sun.

I love making wine!

The original story:

http://hudson-chathamwine.blogspot.com/2008/05/old-kinderhook-vineyard-and-hudson.html

RACKING THE WINE

Racking the wine is the cellar rat's worst nightmare. First, you have to carefully transfer the top 90-95% of the wine from one barrel to another. Then you have to take the sluge from one barrel and put it in another.

The you have to clean out the old barrel, and then move to the next barrel and start all over again. It's like doing a Chinese jigsaw puzzle with 800 pound pieces. And it's dirty. And it's messy. And everyone gets soaking wet even if you didn't think you were going to. It's an awful way to spend a day. Hoses everywhere. Sloshing. Moving big barrels. Ugh!

Of course, there was a catch. We were moving some wine from steel fermenters and plastic drums to oak for aging. Problem? We had no more barrels. So my friend Chris Terry (yes, he who helped paint the barn) came with me as I drove a truck out to Long Island to buy some used oak barrels (we're a small winery, we can't afford ten $1,200 barrels). We buy used ones and then add new staves.

Chris was supposed to keep me company, but he wasn't much use on the ride back!

Here's a few pictures of the team working the Baco Noir for late this year. This is the Baco's second racking. We're a little compulsive.

PHOTOS FROM
DUTCHESS SPRING CRAFTS FESTIVAL 2009
FROM HUDSON-CHATHAM WINERY

Here's our photos from the fest!


Chris and I met early Saturday morning, stopped for much needed coffee (Chris had been up late the night before - a no-no before a festival by the way). I too had been up until late the night before bottling this year's Malbec. So I honestly wasn't much better. We got more coffee when we arrived at the fairgrounds, after we set up, and bought ourselves some sustenance (He had a blueberry muffin and I had a scone).



After some sugar and caffeine were were both much better. You can see Chris is much happier!

We saw lots of cool stuff, and bought a few craft items. And we've decided to have the entire family recorded by a silhouette maker who we met at the show.

Anyway, great seeing you all! And thanks for coming by the booth!

HUDSON-CHATHAM WINERY

AT THE

OWEGO STRAWBERRY FESTIVAL

SATURDAY, JUNE 20, 2009

Mark your calendars for Saturday, June 20, for Strawberry Festival 2009! This will be their 29th year of the Strawberry Festival, the Southern Tier's grandaddy signature festival, an event filled with entertainment, food, artisans, parade, strawberry shortcakes and everything else strawberries! The Festival grows each year and manages to keep its small town country flavor boasting approximately 30,000 visitors each year. It's an outdoor event held rain or shine in downtown Owego, New York, "the coolest small town in America!."

We'll be there Saturday from 9 am - 4 pm!

http://www.owegostrawberryfestival.com/

HUDSON-CHATHAM WINERY

AT RHINEBECK CRAFTS FAIR 2009

http://www.craftsatrhinebeck.com/

Crafts at Rhinebeck
June 20 & 21, 2009Each June and October, the Dutchess Fairgrounds is the site for the premier arts and crafts shows in the northeast – the Annual Crafts at Rhinebeck Festival. Both shows are juried and attract some of the finest artists from around the world. The June Crafts at Rhinebeck is a “high end” contemporary show, while the fall show has more the flavor of a family festival with a petting zoo and hay rides, as well as crafts.
www.dutchessfair.com/

HUDSON-CHATHAM WINERY
PHOTOS FROM
LYNDHURST