As you can tell by now, me and the other Monkeys have this huge urge to get closer to grapes… I know, I know. It’s odd at times, but hey, that’s passion.

So. I have left my city job (circ. aug 2010) and moved to Naramata for a three month sabbatical to work Crush. This is truly a dream I have had for a long time and now it’s happening.

I will be working at Laughing Stock Winery with David and Cynthia Enns. Super people I have known for ages and I have always been a fan of their wines. I managed to find a great B&B that had a separate cottage, like a one room suite, for an extended stay and I’m set…

So work starts. I remember laughing at some of the phrases that float around as folk lore about winemaking… Like “if you want to make a small fortune in the wine biz, start with a big fortune…” A press for $65 grand! Wow! Or “ winemaking is 48% cleaning shit, 48% moving heavy shit, and 2% drinking beer.” Well, the only debate is whether or not the 2% should 1.5% or 4%. Depends on the day… the rest… Bang on.

My first day I was introduced to my new best mate, the Kärcher Power Washer.
No diss to Jonas (Assistant winemaker) and Kirby, super guys… but me and Kärcher are getting close. For the first few weeks, it’s all about getting ready for grapes. Clean everything!

The fun side of course is getting to crawl into the craziest places i.e. tanks, the high up on ladders… or the fork lift (Yes mom, is was tied on.)

Then it got really cool crawling into the big press. This is a huge cylinder with a bladder on the inside. The grapes get dumped in, door closed, it spins slowly and the bladder inflates to squish the grapes in the case of white or Pomace (the skins, seeds, etc… After fermentation) with reds.

Pressure, time and cycles can all be programmed to gently get the full extraction of juice out.

No grapes yet, but strangely, it’s a blast.