In the meantime enjoy these pictures of Rob Gibson's Merlot crush and start to the fermentation of some of his Merlot grapes that he loves to work with ...
Here I have taken above a picture of Rob's fermenting Merlot grape juice in one of his GIBSON wine glasses with the word Barossa on it and him behind seen through the glass in his winery.
It was a beautiful February early afternoon as I recall in the Barossa Valley in 2008. Chris Pigott and I were feeling no pain.
The pictures here are f Rob, Annie and his assistant winemaker working with the just-fermenting Merlot grapes. Rob is a big fan of the Merlot grape and uses it along with the Shiraz grape.
It was a great treat to taste and to see the process here first-hand with Rob. He is totally committed to this pursuit of excellent wine in both the Loose End and the GIBSON wines of his.
I think these pictures capture and do a bit of justice showing this labor of love and commitment on Rob's part. It just never stops : he worked at it all throughout the day even though we were there and he entertained us, too with Annie's help.
As I say later I inadvertently added an earlier blog about Rob on my chatargentina blog site. You should check it out. I think Rob told us that he has traveled to Argentina and done some consulting for the wineries down there? Is this correct Rob?
On a more current topic Rob I do want to tell you that I spoke of you recently in the store with viticulturist Lucie Morton that said she worked with you many years ago. She said to say " hello " to you. Lucie came to speak about the vines that she recommended that be planted in Virginia at the BOXWOOD winery that makes two Bordeaux-style reds : one like a Right Bank and one like a Left Bank Bordeaux. They are both excellent.
Enjoy these photos and scroll down for the rest of this story. Then go to : chatargentina for more on Rob Gibson and his excellent Aussie Barossa South Australia wines.
You have to go to : chatargentina.blogspot.com to see my blog on Rob Gibson. Here are a couple of pictures to get you motivated to do so.
As you may know if you have followed this chataustralia blog at all that Chris Pigott then of the Country Vintners and I went to Australia together in early February of 2008 ( between the 10th and the 21st I believe ) and had one of the great experiences of our lives. Spending time with Rob and his wife Annie certainly was both an eye-opener and wonderful as Rob and Annie both made the Barossa Valley come alive and into Kodak moments for me as I snapped away with my Kodak Easy Share CX 4200 using many double A batteries.
Like the wines of Rob and the others I was also very impressed with the quality of these photos I took. I can only take some of the credit for that : I can take all the credit for thoroughly enjoying all of Annie and Rob's " Loose End : and GIBSON wines.
We currently at Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits ( 3423 Connecticut Avenue N.W. Washington D.C. 20008 Tel : 202-363-4265 anthonyquinn@clevelandparkwine.com www.clevelandparkwine.com ) have two or three GIBSON reds ( both older vintages of the Shiraz wines I believe ) as well as two Loose End reds ( GSM & Shiraz ) and the sparkling blend of Merlot and Shiraz Loose End, too.
Call for more info and we will tell you what is available in Washington D.C. of Annie and Rob's wines. This is ever the time if ever a time there was to buy both the Loose End and the GIBSON wines!
Cheers, TONY
