One thing that took some getting used to is celebrating Christmas in summer. It just isn’t the same–and for years I would get homesick in June, when I wanted to see Christmas lights to brighten the oncoming winter. We’ve gotten used to celebrating despite the weather, but our family traditions are, well, a little untraditional.  [...]

Is to get through malolactic. And the wines obliged. This is the latest date on record for Flaherty, and I’m sure Ed lost some sleep waiting for them to finish, but all the 2008 lots have finally completed their malolactic fermentations.

We were out at Cauquenes on the weekend of the 8th. Don Ismael has done the initial clearing of the vineyard site and fenced off the old adobe building that we use for storage (and our base camp when we visit). Things are really moving along.
We met a new surveyor while we were there and [...]

Avocados are a staple in Chile. We call them paltas, and they are sold by variety. Haas and Edranol are large, export-quality fruit, but we also get the local (and cheaper) de la Cruz (a smooth black skin, often stringy flesh) and Fuerte (so-called because it’s the most resistant to frost). My favorite is the [...]