INTERNSHIP PROGRAM!

Bunker Hill Vineyard and Winery

INTERNSHIP PROGRAM!

With this Blog, we are going to highlight an aspect of BHV that many of our friends and guests may not be aware….our “BHV Internship Program”!

With our 2015 grape harvest recently completed, our 2015 “BHV Internship Program” has, also, drawn to a close. Now that our world has refocused from harvesting back to wine making and customer service, we are able to draw a deep breath and reflect upon both the good harvest and the tenure of our Intern. We are always thankful for the bounty of Mother Nature, but, equally, we are thankful for having shared a time with a young person seeking their place in life! The lessons that they have learned from us will, hopefully, influence them in a positive way on their journey into their future!

BHV’s “Internship Program” requirements are simple, see below:

   “Each year, BHV proudly accepts students from accredited schools and colleges for on-site/hands-on Internships. Interns will work side-by-side with BHV management to learn the art of wine making, sustainability and customer service. All disciplines of study will be considered.

Interested students should e-mail us their resume. Included in the resume should be your requested internship dates and a brief explanation of Why you would like to be our intern.”  That’s it!

One observation that we would like to share with you is the realization that most of the youth of today are not lost. We are encouraged by the diligence, intelligence, and work ethic of our interns! They are keenly aware that the world of the future will rest upon their shoulders. They understand WHY it is important to protect the world around them and to run a business in a “green & sustainable way”!

If you own and operate a business and do not currently offer an internship program, we encourage you to consider starting one this year!

Thank You…..Salute & Happy Days!

About…Sparkling Wines!

     

            

About…Sparkling Wines!

Whenever the discussion of wines turns to “Sparkling Wines”, the eyes of many people glaze over!  To many people, Sparkling Wines seem a little exotic and foreign.  The reality is, Sparkling Wines had their birth in a land far from the U.S.A., in Europe, in Champagne, France. Hundreds of years ago a Monk discovered the process of creating Champagne (Sparkling Wine). Because great wines were always ‘Unfiltered’, his ‘Ah-Ha’ moment probably was inspired by the secondary fermentation of his wine. In any case, it is to this Monk, in Champagne, France, a very long time ago, that we owe this supremely beautiful wine!

Before we get any further into our discussion of Sparkling Wines, we need to differentiate the “REAL” Sparkling Wines from the cheap, Factory produced bubbly wines.

The process for creating “REAL” Sparkling wines (like Champagne) is the Holy Grail! A “REAL” Sparkling Wine must go through TWO fermentations. The first fermentation takes the fruit to the level of most normal wines. Then, after the first fermentation, the wine goes through a second fermentation…”In the Bottle”! REAL Sparkling wines will always say on the label…”Fermented in this Bottle”! Additionally, a “REAL” Sparkling Wine can ONLY be created DRY (no sweetness)! The reason that a ‘REAL’ Sparkling Wine can ONLY be created DRY is because ‘Live Yeast’ are added to the Sparkling Wine bottle before it is wired shut. The Live Yeast eat the tiny amount of sugars inside the bottle and produce the natural bubbles that we associate with our Sparkling Wines! As with all great wines, your “REAL” Sparkling Wine label should read…’GROWN, PRODUCED, VINTED & BOTTLED’ and ‘UNFILTERED’!

By the way, each bottle of “REAL” Sparkling Wine must be turned a quarter turn each day throughout the second fermentation. Very time consuming and labor intensive, but well worth the wait!

Now, compare the above “REAL” Sparkling Wine to the cheap Factory produced bubbly wine. A cheap Factory produced bubbly wine is usually made from a filtered table wine. They add sugars, fruit juices and made up chemicals of hints & notes. Then, from a tank of carbon dioxide, they inject each bottle (just like your favorite soft drink). There’s NO live yeast here! Within a blink of an eye the cheap Factory produced Sparkling Wine is wired shut, labeled, boxed and shipped out the door!

If you’re like me, however, you may be turned off by the natural dryness of the “REAL” Sparkling Wine. Well, don’t be! You should NEVER sacrifice the quality of a “REAL” Sparkling Wine!  If needed, from this day forward, you are empowered to add a little sweetness to your “REAL” sparkling wine. To my glass of “REAL” Sparkling Wine, I like to add a little whole cane sugar (it’s NOT GMO’d) or natural Florida Orange Blossom Honey! Try a slice of Fresh fruit in your glass of “REAL” Sparkling Wine for a wonderful treat!! Whatever type of sweetener that you use in your world, will work fine in your “REAL” Sparkling Wine.

So, until we meet again, pour a glass of “REAL” Sparkling Wine, raise it up in front of you and say…”Salute & Happy Days”!   

Factory Wineries!

Factory Wineries!

What in the world is a Factory Winery? With this Blog, we’ll tell you what they are and how to avoid them!

Factory wineries are popping up everywhere in America. Cities and towns that never had a winery before are, overnight, the recipients of one or two or more. Many of these new Factory wineries are getting fabulous subsidies from the local taxpayers and governments. So, just what is the wine consumer getting for their hard earned money? Answer…very little or nothing!

A Factory winery has an Achilles Heel.  There’s a Federal Law on the books that requires every winery in America to tell us how their wines are created. A Factory winery will usually print it in tiny script on their back label. If you see the words…”Bottled, Produced & Bottled or Vinted & Bottled” it’s a Factory winery. Just one or two words is the trademark of a Factory winery. What’s missing is the word…”GROWN”!!

                       

Factory wineries “Source” most of their inventory in the form of juices and concentrates from ‘off-site’ suppliers. Some of their inventory may come from America, but much does not. They bring it into their Factory winery, mix & blend it, match a color chart, filter it, add made up flavors of ‘hints & notes’, bottle it and offer it to the wine consumer. Most will never tell us from where they “Sourced” their inventory or that their wines are “Filtered”. Filtered wines have a heritage of about 85 years and a shelf life of between 2 to 4 years (for comparison, see UNFILTERED , below).

Even though our landfills are filling up with used and empty wine bottles (4 Billion a Year), these Factory wineries refuse to recycle/repurpose their empty wine bottles. Each time they bottle they are using brand new wine bottles from China, Mexico, or Italy.

So, Green Winer, what’s our alternative, we love wines!

Fortunately, we do have an alternative. Look for wines and wineries that produce wines that state the following on their labels:

1  1.)    GROWN, PRODUCED, VINTED & BOTTLED (Produced, Vinted & Bottled can be OK if they are using whole Fresh fruits & Vegetables from a local farm. Ask questions.)

    2.)    UNFILTERED (these are the ONLY wines that continue to get better with age. They have NO end-time! Their heritage extends back into time over 8,000 years!)

    3.)    The word ‘NATURAL’ on any fruit or vegetable wine (this tells us that that winery is making their fruit wines from whole fresh fruits. Absent the word Natural and the wines are made from juices & concentrates.

If you have one of these wineries in your neighborhood that is producing their wine to these highest standards, please buy their wines and tell them that the “Green Winer” says Thank you!!

So, until we meet, again…..”Salute & Happy Days”!