Grape-to-Wine Camp 2012
Fuklar Organic Farm and Wine Estate.
We are pleased to announce the 2012 Vintage
Fuklar Grape-to- Wine Camp for all you established and prospective wine
enthusiasts who would like to experience the full beauty of the grape from
vineyard to wine production.
Come participate in our camp to be held
in the picturesque valley of Imselliet, limits of Mgarr, to make your own wine,
to take home to share with family and friends, throughout the year. Spend a weekend break with us, in our
traditional family farm home, in harvesting and pressing your own wine using
our facilities and knowledge.
We are offering you the opportunity to
purchase 100 kg of grapes, grown using organic methods under certification from
Biozoo Srl of Italy. The varieties available are listed below. The package
price for the whole experience is 175 Euro including the weekend full board
stay, tutorials and guidance on how to process your grapes, using our facilities
and equipment, into a top class quality wine.
We meet on Friday afternoon, you may sleep
over and stay up to Sunday afternoon, so that we will start early to avoid
working under the mid day hours of heat. The dates will be between August and
September; the exact dates will be announced later, as these depend on the
maturity of the grapes.
DEMIJOHNS WILL BE AVAILABLE ON LOAN ON A REFUNDABLE
DEPOSIT BASIS.
You will be able to book for the various
varieties shown below.
Chardonnay :- (white) indicative
date early August
Merlot :- (Red) indicative
date late August
Shiraz :- also known as
Syrah (red) indicative date late August
Mourvedre :- (Red) indicative
date late August or early September
Grenache :- (Red) indicative
date late August or early September
Girgentina :- (white) indicative
date mid or late September
Gellewza :- (red) indicative
date late August or early September
Trebbiano :- (white) indicative
date late mid or late September
All the grapes are grown to EU ORGANIC
FARMING STANDANDARDS. THE WINE MAKING PROCESS WILL BE IN LINE WITH THE NEW EU
STANDARD FOR ORGANIC WINE.
The minimum amount of grapes you will be
allowed to process is 100 kilos which allows for 1 traditional 54 liter
demijohn, plus extra for topping up after racking. This will provide you with
about 72 bottles of wine which you may enjoy, with pride and satisfaction,
throughout the year with friends and family using your own personalized
bottling and labeling.
The program for
white grape varietals
Friday evening
17:00Hrs:- we meet at RazzettI il-Fuklar,
for check-in, refreshments, introductions and
familiarization of participants.
18:00:- Preparation of equipment and
implements to be used on the morrow.
19:30:- Presentation of organic
principles in general and for growing wine grapes in particular. We explain vineyard
management, viticulture and the wine making process. We explain course of
action and schedule for making your wine.
20:30-: Dinner - Penne Carbonara, fresh
fruit salad with ice cream.
Saturday Morning
05:00:- Wakeup call, breakfast and
deployment to vineyards for harvesting. By 10:00a.m. all grapes should have been
stored and ready for pressing.
11:00:- Lunch Waldorf salad, Rock-melon,
water-melon and ice cream. .
12.00 Start crushing and de-stemming of grapes.
16:00: Start pressing of must. (for white
grapes only)
For
white wine it is imperative to remove the skins, by pressing almost immediately
and keeping the juice cool whilst fermenting. The juice, after pressing, is
placed in the stainless steel fermenting tanks ready for distribution for the
various participants to take home.
*for red and rose' wine see how to
continue below
19:00 pressing of the 6 hour rose'
20:30:- Presentation on how to take care
of your fermenting wine once you have taken it home. Also you will be shown how
to make your own personalized labels using computer artwork.
21:00:- Barbeque
Sunday morning
00:30:- Pressing of the 12 hour rose.
08:00-10:00:- Breakfast
White wine participants may tap their
wine into demijohns ready to take home.
11:00:- Lunch-Baked Cerna fillets with
prawns and vegetable contorne. Desert:-Banofee pie.
12:00:- Pressing of the 24 hr rose'.
*for red and rose' wines
Unlike the white grapes no pressing takes
place immediately after the crushing /de-stemming.
The crushed/de-stemmed grapes are placed
in maceration/fermentation tanks and left for a period of 6 to 60 hrs depending
on the grape varietal and the level of coloration required in the wine. For the
red wines the participants will have to press their must, wine fill their
demijohn on Tuesday evening.
For obvious reasons booking is limited to
first come first serve basis.
SOME TIPS FOR
PARTICIPANTS
What to wear for
the harvest.
Wear comfortable loose clothing that will
give as much protection from the sun as is practical and comfortable to you.
If your skin is still white, cover up or
use a suitable sun block.
Wear a hat for sun protection.
Do not wear foot wear like sandals that
do not strap securely. Preferably use light running shoes that give you secure
balance when maneuvering through the grapevine.
What not to wear
for the production of wine.
Wear clothing that you do not mind
staining with red wine.
