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+--- Thread: Questions about Vineyards (/thread-17876.html)
- Jefferson - 07-30-2001
Greetings!
I am doing research on winemaking for the publisher of "Secrets of the Vine," sequel to the NYT #1 bestselling book, "The Prayer of Jabez." The publisher is creating a devotional guide for "Secrets" and needs lots of new information on the art, science, and craft of winemaking. I'm hoping you can help.
What I'll do is just post at the end of this message the list of questions given to me by the publisher. If you see one or more you'd like to speak to, I'd be greatly appreciative. Thank you!
Note: It will be obvious in some of these questions that I personally don't know anything about vineyards and winegrowing. Please excuse my newbieness!
Jeff Gerke
For Multnomah Publishers
*** List of Questions ***
1. What legendary records and great stories are there surrounding this subject?
2. What is the sweetest grape? The finest eating grape? The best wine grape?
3. How many grapes does it take to make a glass of wine? A quart of jelly?
4. How long does a good branch get?
5. What are the reasons for pruning?
6. What makes a grape (or wine) sweet or bitter or other wise affects the taste?
7. Why is the skin of some grapes thicker than others?
8. What makes some grapes hardy and some not?
9. What is the premiere kind of vine? The premiere grape? What makes it best?
10. What about grafting? How is it used and why?
11. What does a vinedresser do? (See also #25.)
12. What are the primary diseases that make a branch not bear fruit, and what does the vinedresser do to combat these?
13. What are the different pruning methods? Pruning seasons? What happens?
14. How do you measure the success of a harvest-—in pounds, sweetness, value?
15. What percent of grapes are used for wine? For eating? For raisins? For jelly?
16. What are the most commercially important grapes?
17. What are the most commercially important growing regions?
18. How many branches can a vine handle?
19. How long does an average branch grow naturally? How long should one be allowed to grow for optimum grape output?
20. What about the root system? Age? Bearing years?
21. If you don’t prune a branch for a year/two years/longer, what happens?
22. If you found a wild vine and started pruning it, what would happen?
23. How does weather affect harvest?
24. What are the primary pruning tools? What are special tools and for what are they used?
25. What does a master vinedresser do that most novices don’t or won't do?
26. How long does it take to bring a branch or vine to maximum abundance and quality?
27. What would make a vinedresser cut a branch off and burn it? Is this a common practice? Out of a theoretical 100 branches, how many would typically get cut off?
28. How many years does an average branch/vine last?
29. If you continue to cut a branch for 10 years, will a new branch still start in its place?
30. If you were to track the harvest of a branch over the lifetime, what would you see in terms of volume of harvest?
31. What is the single greatest threat to the health of a vineyard?
32. How has the art and science of winegrowing changed since ancient times? Since medieval times? Since the turn of the century?
- Kcwhippet - 07-30-2001
I know the answers to many of the questions, and I could find the answers to the rest in short order. However, all the answers would take more space here than would be sensible, and more time than I would want to devote in one or even two sittings to do all that typing. I'll pass. I suggest you either do an internet search with Altavista, or some other search engine, or drive to your local library and hit the reference stacks.
- Jefferson - 07-30-2001
Thanks for your message. I wasn't thinking anyone would answer all my questions and post them here. I was only hoping that people would pick one or two to answer and maybe by the end I would have everything I needed.
Maybe it would be better if I just was able to find a few volunteers who would be willing to answer some of these in private e-mails to me.
- Thomas - 07-30-2001
Jefferson, a writer who seeks easy research runs the risk of becoming a hack, not to mention the possibility of being led astray.
Some of us (me included) have spent decades learning about wine and food. I suggest you do some real in-depth research to discover the answers to your questions.
[This message has been edited by foodie (edited 07-30-2001).]
- winoweenie - 07-31-2001
I wholeheartedly second Foodies reccomendation.We get tons of questions from high school and college students looking for the easy out. Wine knowledge 'aint easy. I've quit answering " essay " or "research " questions for the simple fact the person asking just wants out and has no intention of retaining or using the info. Do the research you're paid to do. Try it, you mite like it. WW