It’s been ages since I’ve written about the vineyard project in Cauquenes, but that doesn’t mean the project is languishing. We’re moving forward with the first phase of planting, despite a few obstacles. One of the first challenges when establishing a vineyard is ensuring a water supply. Cauquenes gets more the twice the rainfall of [...]

Last night the kids wanted pasta, so I rummaged through the fridge to see what we could throw together. (We call these meals Stone Soup, even when they aren’t soupy.) The result was really tasty, and it only took a few minutes to prepare once the water was boiling. Any small pasta shape would work [...]

We are pleased to announce that we will be pouring Flaherty at the Tenth Annual Cata y Vino tasting, to be held at the W Hotel in Santiago on Friday and Saturday. This is the first year that micro wineries are participating in the tasting, thanks to efforts by the MOVI group. The Movimiento de [...]

There are two types of tarragon: Russian and French. Russian tarragon is grown from seed, and the resulting herb is bitter, bland, and generally not useful for cooking. French tarragon is the one with that wonderful creamy anise flavor; it does not set viable seed, however, so it must be grown from cuttings. Sadly, there [...]

One of our few winter chores is pruning the vines. The main goal of pruning is canopy management, in the sense of controlling yields and achieving a good distribution of the next season’s clusters along the canopy wire. The clusters should hang freely and not overlap or bunch up, which would limit air flow around [...]

Pumpkin pie is a real treat. Unfortunately, what passes for pumpkin pie these days is usually made with a store-bought crust, canned pumpkin, and evaporated milk. The result is heavy and often unappetizing. In contrast, real pumpkin pie, made with fresh pumpkin puree and real cream, is a light, spicy custard.   Once you’ve had the [...]