WINE SHOPPING.
With the overwhelming quantity of work ahead of us back in Bugtussle, it's hard not to be at the farm right now. But the reality is - we have our cabin money (CONTINUED THANK YOU'S!), just no real money to live on, thus our little sojourn to Nashville. We'll try and earn enough cash over the holidays so, come February or thereabouts, when we head back to the farm, we can stay put. For keeps. That's the goal, and so far so good!As Hannah mentioned a few days ago, I'm doing some shifts at a great local wine shop called Woodland Wine Merchant here in the city. I worked there almost two years ago over the winter and the owner, Will, offered me some holiday work which I couldn't pass up.Their selection is wonderful, on par with any big city wine shop and in many cases, better. Beyond their expansive selection of items like bitters and amaro, they carry much of what got me into farming in the first place: natural, organic, and biodynamic wines. It is deeply satisfying to turn people onto these wines, wines I believe in and stand behind, from farmers I wish to support. So although it's a bummer on nice days to not be on the farm at the moment, it's nice to feel good about the work I'm doing, and the shop I'm helping.So if you're in Nashville, stop by! We'll talk shop and I'll introduce you to some of my favorite people (the staff) and favorite health tonics (the wines).À votre santé, as they say in French––to your health.- Jesse.
(photo courtesy of Woodland Wine Merchant)
ALTERNATIVE CANNING.
Jesse's latest article for Sustainable Kentucky is up! Head over here to check it out. It is basically an experimentation in fermentation....a different way of canning your extra tomatoes that saves a LOT of time and energy. While you're there, you should also read the last in the Young Farmer Series about Good Life Ranch, another young farming couple doing some seriously unique stuff! Here is the link.- Hannah.
SAVING TOMATO SEED.
If you bust open a tomato and examine the juices you'll notice thousands of tiny seeds floating around. All those seeds have a small, visible sack around them which prevents each from germinating inside the tomato. What's required to render the seed viable and remove the sack, and what makes Hannah and I particularly fond of saving tomato seed, is a little bit of fermentation.You see, in order to save seed on almost any plant, all that's necessary is to imitate what nature does. How, you must ask yourself, would this plant reproduce in nature? For tomatoes, they rely on the fruit to mature, fall from the plant, rot on the ground and re-seed. That, in essence, is what you have to replicate!So here's how we do it:Take two very ripe heirloom tomatoes of the same variety and crush the seeds and juices into a jar (basic red tomatoes are generally hybrids and will not give you seeds true-to-type––you will get plants...but they will be a mystery). Use two tomatoes for a little diversity, but choose healthy tomatoes from the most productive plants. If you like the shape or size or color of a certain tomato....choose that one!Add a tablespoon or two of water to the cup with the seeds. Stir a couple times a day for a few days. It will smell, be prepared! After three days or so––don't go much over four days––remove seeds by using a strainer or cloth and rinse them. Lay seeds on a lid or plate––not paper, as it will stick––and let them dry. Then? Place them in a baggie and freeze them. Et Voila!Every one of our heirloom tomatoes plants this year are from seed we saved last year. That's an exciting feeling, not only knowing you chose what kind of tomato to grow, but everything about it!- Jesse.
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| (some of last year's heirlooms....that are currently growing in the garden!) |
BOTTLING.
Blackberry season proved to be rather fruitful this year, if I may be allowed a mildly over-literal statement. But we ended up with four different batches of wine with at least some percentage of blackberries involved: mulberry/blackberry, blackberry/blueberry, blackberry, and a surprisingly funky blackberry/beet wine.Wednesday, I decided to bottle what I could.I love natural grape wine––I do––but there is nothing quite like the variety of hues, aromas and flavors of these country wines. Although all the batches have seemed drier than last year's blackberry wines, I'm impressed with how well they survived the heat waves (literally fermenting in our non-air-conditioned house), and how much potential they are already showing. Needless to say, Hannah and I are definitely looking forward to some tasty dinner pairings this winter!- Jesse.
