Once a year my friends and I look forward to and attend the Vendemmia Festival in South Philadelphia. It is a Fall Festival of wine and food and it is usually held at the end of September or beginning of October. Vendemmia is known as the festival of the crush, the crushing of the grapes used for winemaking.
At this event home winemakers offer their wines to be judged. All sorts of dry wines are judged including fruit fines (like blueberry) and grape wines (like Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay) as well as blends. These home winemakers have shown that home winemaking is not only science but an art because the quality of these wines is typically excellent.
At this event we get to meet the home winemakers and they like to share stories on how to make wine. They are very proud of their offerings as it is a labor of love. The winemakers share stories about where they get their grapes, juice, wine kits and wine supplies. Some winemakers make their wine from fresh grapes (they have to crush and press the grapes), others make the wine from fresh juice, and others make them from wine kits where the juice is concentrated. Wine grapes and juice come from all around the world but most local home winemakers make wine from grapes and juice from Italy, California and Chile. Grapes and juice from Italy and California is available in the October timeframe and the grapes and juice from Chile is available in the May timeframe. The grapes come in containers called lugs (about 35 – 40 pounds of grapes) and the juice comes in 6 gallon pails. The grapes and juice are perishable and so the wine should be made as soon as they are received. The advantage of making wine from a wine kit is that you can make it any time of the year, and they have a long shelf life if you store the box in a cool location.
Anyone who comes to the Vendemmia Festival gets a wine glass and can sample many of the home made wines as well as sample the foods of the local area for the price of admission. Foods include pork and sausage sandwiches, broccoli rabe, pastas, salads espresso, Italian cookies and a variety of other Italian specialties.
For more information on the Vendemmia Festival visit [http://www.vendemmiafestival.com].
For more information on home winemaking tips, techniques, stories and wine recipes visit [http://homewinemaking.thepinot.com]
At this event home winemakers offer their wines to be judged. All sorts of dry wines are judged including fruit fines (like blueberry) and grape wines (like Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay) as well as blends. These home winemakers have shown that home winemaking is not only science but an art because the quality of these wines is typically excellent.
At this event we get to meet the home winemakers and they like to share stories on how to make wine. They are very proud of their offerings as it is a labor of love. The winemakers share stories about where they get their grapes, juice, wine kits and wine supplies. Some winemakers make their wine from fresh grapes (they have to crush and press the grapes), others make the wine from fresh juice, and others make them from wine kits where the juice is concentrated. Wine grapes and juice come from all around the world but most local home winemakers make wine from grapes and juice from Italy, California and Chile. Grapes and juice from Italy and California is available in the October timeframe and the grapes and juice from Chile is available in the May timeframe. The grapes come in containers called lugs (about 35 – 40 pounds of grapes) and the juice comes in 6 gallon pails. The grapes and juice are perishable and so the wine should be made as soon as they are received. The advantage of making wine from a wine kit is that you can make it any time of the year, and they have a long shelf life if you store the box in a cool location.
Anyone who comes to the Vendemmia Festival gets a wine glass and can sample many of the home made wines as well as sample the foods of the local area for the price of admission. Foods include pork and sausage sandwiches, broccoli rabe, pastas, salads espresso, Italian cookies and a variety of other Italian specialties.
For more information on the Vendemmia Festival visit [http://www.vendemmiafestival.com].
For more information on home winemaking tips, techniques, stories and wine recipes visit [http://homewinemaking.thepinot.com]