Parkwood Cellars- 33 years of winemaking

The name Parkwood Cellars came from my living on Park Street and Tony living in the Woodmont section of Milford

2020 Cabernet Franc being pressed

Back in the 1980s my friend Tony and I decided to try our hand at making wine. We had both been getting into wine over the years and this seemed like a good way to learn more about it. We had a lot to learn.

Cabernet Franc on left, Malbec on right

For our first vintage we went to the fruit and veggie whole-sellers at Long Wharf in New Haven. Without knowing what to ask for we ended up with grapes we had never heard of. Ruby Cabernet, a cross of Cabernet Sauvignon and Carignan and Carnelian, a cross of Grenache and the cross of Cabernet Sauvignon and Carignan. Both were developed to thrive in a warm climate such as California's Central Valley. 

When we inquired about getting yeast an old timer told us, "Yeast is for bread, not wine." So off we went to crush the grapes using a $3 fruit crusher I found at a tag sale. Without knowing it, we were making "natural wine." No additives were used at all those first few years. We did not know that most grapes are loaded with natural yeasts and after being crushed fermentation can start by itself.  

Yeast being hydrated before adding to the crushed grapes

During fermentation carbon dioxide is given off pushing the the crushed grapes to the surface.

Punching down the grapes

After a few years and reading a few books like From Vines to Wines by Jeff Cox we learned that many of the grapes we purchased had been dosed with a sulfite solution to prevent mold and to control unwanted fermentation during shipping. We also learned the hard way that some natural yeast may not be able to ferment the wine to complete dryness. We had a batch of Zinfandel that stopped fermenting at about 8% alcohol and went bad. We now use cultured yeast that produces reliable results. If we grew the grapes or had a source of truly freshly harvested grapes I would go back to the more natural methods. The California grapes shipped to us often spend time picked and loaded into boxes that hold between 36 and 40 pounds. Many then sit in a refrigerated place waiting for shipping by truck to make the journey east. Some of the grapes are not always at their best and not the greatest candidates for a completely hands off style of winemaking. Fortunately, the quality of today's shipped grapes is better than ever and make some very good wines.

Following fermentation the grapes are pressed. The young wine is transferred to 5 gallon glass carboys.

My partner Tony

My neighbor Harry lending a hand

The masked winemakers. Tony and I with our 33rd vintage

Circa 1988, Tony and I with probably the world's smallest press. Still have it

This was 1990 I believe, still using the $3 fruit crusher

We have two 5 gallon French oak barrels. Each red gets some time in the barrel.

As our winemaking  progressed over the years we started entering competitions. If things went well we would get recognized by fellow winemakers and receive a medal. We had the good fortune to make quite a few wines that were good enough to qualify as award winners.

We've come a long way from the early days. We have embraced many of the modern techniques such as using chromatography to check on progress of the malic acid to lactic acid conversion in the reds. Using various temperature controls for fermentation of whites (cooler) and heating jackets for reds when cellar temperature drops too low to finish the malo lactic thing. But we have found ourselves  moving away from some of the additives. We use less sulfites than ever before and never filter our wines. I'd like to try whole cluster ferments for one of the reds next year. Hopefully we won't need a mask then.

This year we are making Cabernet Franc and Malbec from California grown grapes. We also have some Sauvignon Blanc hope to do a Riesling. Every year is different, some with challenges that teach us something new.

​Thanks to our friends Mark and Tess at Maltose Express for all their help over the years. My wife deserves some recognition for putting up with my hobby and for times like lining up bins of wine in the dining room because it was too cold for malolactic fermentation to take place in the basement. Thanks to Tony for hanging in there with me and and all the friends and neighbors that helped over the years.