At lot is changed in the Persimmon Creek vineyard since the last time (April 19th), lots of green, heat and even the grapes are starting to grow. Today we are helping to rack the 2007 Cabernet Frank and we are talking about winemaking, or vinification. Vinification is the production of wine, starting with selection of the grapes and ending with bottling the finished wine.

Of all factors affecting the quality of a wine, the quality of the grapes more than any other factor determines the quality of the wine. Their quality is not only affected by their variety, but also by the weather during the growing season, the soil, the time of harvest, and the way they are pruned. The combination of these effects is often referred to as their terroir.

Harvest is the picking of the grapes and in many ways the first step in wine production. Grapes are either harvested mechanically or by hand. The decision to harvest grapes is typically made by the winemaker and informed by the level of sugar (called Brix).

Racking is the process of siphoning the wine off the lees into a new, clean barrel. Racking allows clarification and aids in stabilization. Wine that is allowed to age on the lees often develops "off-tastes". The racking process is repeated several times during the aging of wine.