Looks like we’ll have another chance at frost tonight. Lows are supposed to be in the mid to low thirties.

I noticed a slight layer of frost coating some of the lawns and rooftops this morning. Definitely a sign of colder weather to come. But it also means that those pesky fall allergies and bugs should almost be over with soon.

With the coming of frost, I expect the grape leaves to start curling in earnest. I have quite a bit of work to do in the vineyard this fall. Among the tasks I need to accomplish:

• rid the vineyard of gophers
• hill up mulch around the base of the three new Marquette vines
• clean up stray grape clusters
• decide what to do with the Valiants
• restore dead/dying plants with cuttings?
• replace them with another variety - Marquette or Sabrevois?

That should do for now…

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This past weekend I pulled out a bottle of one of my favorite wines - a 2000 Benziger Old Vine Zinfandel. Back in 2001 I bought a case of it and have been slowly working my way through it. Saturday evening I opened the bottle at a friends place and right away knew something wasn’t right.

First off, I noticed the color seemed to have a very slight bronze or brownish note to it. Then when I tasted it I immediately could tell that this bottle was past it’s prime. The over the top jammy spiciness of the wine was gone which revealed too much alcohol and not much body. To say I was bummed out would be an understatement.

The first thing I did once back home Sunday night was to grab another bottle of the same case and happily this bottle was much better. It had certainly aged but at a much slower rate than the bottle from Saturday. So I guess I’ll be working my way through the rest of that case this fall.