We are participating in the Prince Edward County Winegrowers' first winter event with Aromatic February Fondue at By Chadsey's Cairns.February 17, 18 and 19 from 11am. We will serve tasting portions of fondue cheese blended with either our Muscat or our White Horse aromatic whites and partner them with the wines. For the sweet toothed we will also serve maple almond pralines to be partnered with our mulled Gewurztraminer and fresh ginger. If there is snow it could be a great day to explore our 140 acres on skis or snow shoes before warming up in Applehouse tasting room. We usually don't offer tastes of our Darkling Sparkling but it will also be available all weekend.

Daiva and friends, Cor Aut Mors, giving us a great wassailing memory in the barn on Sunday.

Wassail was great last weekend but this Sunday will be extra special at By Chadsey's Cairns. Daiva is bringing her choral group, COR AUT MOR, to sing two sets for us in the barn, of traditional, celtic and winter songs. First is at 2pm and the second in the magic of the barn after darkness falls at 4:45pm. Donations are encouraged to help pick up their travel costs and woolies and buffalo robes are advised, as snow is predicted

Will the challenges and delights of this crazy season never end. We managed to bury about half the vineyards canes before the big cold hit. Thank goodness for Brighton Gravellly Sand. Hope the rest survived the dramatic drop. Yesterday, when it was too cold to tie down without snapping off canes, we decided to pick the Gamay in east King Eddie Vineyard which we had otherwise abandoned in order to bury canes. The 130 picking lugs we filled wlith frozen grapes, were kept on the cold crush pad over night and we started pressing them this morning. The first crush has produced our first frozen grape juice at 33.4 brix of sugar. Just under what qualifies for ice wine, (if it were after Nov. 15). It tastes amazing. There won't be a lot but it will be a collectors treasure. It is such a glorious way to end a curiouser and curiouser growing year.

Harvest is done. And, given the weirdness of the year it has ended appropriately with great news about the Chenin Blanc and a niggling "what if?" The Chenin crop was both beautiful and double last year's. Seeing as we sold out of the 2016's in mid-August this will be good news for its fans too. We have left some Gamay, prolific but with staggered ripening, on the vine. We don't have time to process it because we have to start tying down canes today. We are already flirting with disaster beginning as late as we are. All in all, our biggest total crop ever, pushing our tank capacity to the limit.

We are going to pick the Chenin Blanc Saturday a.m. Come join our crew to bring in our rarest wine grape. It won't be a full on picking party because I won't have time to cook for it. However, we will bring in coffee break treats and pizza for lunch for any volunteers who can lend us a hand,and of course there will be wine. Not all of our staffers can be on hand this weekend so we could use a few more volunteers who love our Chenin. We will reserve a bottle of Chenin 2017 for any who pick. Call me at 613 848 3429 if you think you can join in.

This very strange but largely successful year continues to throw us curve balls that literally are keeping me awake at night. Saturday's picking party was amazing. We had over 80 people picking and sorting grapes. Sunday I helped Vida press the first Pinot and St. Laurent picks late into the night. Then yesterday our wonderful staff team extricated asian lady bugs from the Gewurz in anticipation of the arrival of Woody with the picking machine in the afternoon. It broke down after picking one row. Now we have to pick it by hand in addition to getting off the second pick or Gamay and the Chenin. Boy could I use those volunteer pickers back again. I hate this delay in starting to tied down the vines which we would usually have begun by now in order to be buried by freeze up. The vulnerability has me composing this angsty post at 2:30 am. But somehow it will all work out.

Looks like we avoided the frost last night. I think it hit pretty hard inland. We will know better by 1pm if there was any damage. While most of what remains to be picked could be taken off now, we really wanted more time for the Gamay and Chenin. By the end of the week we may hit 20 celcius which could make all the difference in the world.

We postponed the pinot pick yesterday looking for a few more days of ripening. It was pickable but not ideal, and it looked to be capable of withstanding some rain (which finally arrived late in the day). So, instead we started our first pick of Muscat taking the ripest clusters and leaving the rest for a subsequent pick. It is carrying a significant load this year. A big thank you to the volunteers who came out again.

We started the 2017 Vendanges yesterday, by bringing in our largest crop of St. Laurent ever. It looks like we will have the basis for a great PTO vintage depending on how the Gamay comes off in another week's time. Thanks to all the volunteers who came out in response to my cry for help after discovering the botrytis in the Pinot. We cleaned it out on Monday, so today we are going to do our first pick of the Pinot until the rain arrives this afternoon. Not sure yet how weather is going to affect the Picking Brigade on Saturday, morning is looking wet so we may feed everyone first and then pick in the afternoon. Stay tuned.

Just 10 days until Colin Linden lights up the barn with his guitar. Some room left for invitees. If you would like to attend this virtual house party reply to this post or send me an email through the By Chadsey's Cairns website. Concert starts at 8pm, $30 cash contribution at the door is requested for Colin and our maestros of sound Paul and Rob. JK fries should be available a little before the concert gets going.

Attention Ottawa and Perth wine lovers I will be at the Perth farmers' market on Saturdays, Aug. 5, 12 and 26 and Melissa Love will be representing By Chadsey's Cairns at the Westboro market in Ottawa on the same dates. I will deliver wine orders for those in Ottawa who can't make the market after Westboro closes at 3pm. Order through the website.