Dead Crow Wine

Dead Crow Wine

Bob Larson
Bob Larson
With today's Fruit Grower Report, I'm Bob Larson. If you attended the recent Taste Washington wine event in Seattle, it's no secret that our wine industry is flourishing.

But, one thing I noticed among the 230-plus wineries, was the creativity wasn't confined to the tastes, but also some of the names.

One that caught my eye was curiously named, "Dead Crow." So, I had to ask Dead Crow winemaker Cam McNeill, how on earth did you come up with that name ...

McNEILL ... "Well, the honest truth of the matter is we had crows that were killing all the birds around the vineyard, all the quail, all the baby quail, the eggs, the chicks, baby doves, the baby finches, the baby hummingbirds, and so we decided to eliminate at least one crow and put it out as an example to the other crows. And, you know how smart they are! They figured it out."

And? ...

McNEILL ... "And so, they stayed away, so our bird population just flourished."

So, Cam, how long have you been producing Dead Crow?

McNEILL ... "We started making wine about 12 years ago, but we just started marketing two-and-a-half years ago."

McNeill says if you're interested in purchasing some Dead Crow, there's one way ...

McNEILL ... "Online! We just sell cellar direct. No tasting room. We ship in Washington state. Actually, we ship almost everywhere, but we just send it to the Seattle area typically freight free."

And your varieties?

McNEILL ... "Just old vine cab sauv and 100% Mourvèdre, so Mourvèds and Cab Sauv."

Tried both and they are delicious. Dead Crow wines can be found at https://www.deadcrowvineyards.com/wine

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BL: Welcome back to another "Fruit Bites" brought to you by Valent U.S.A. And, joining us once again is Valent's Allison Walston. And this week Allison, tell me what fruit will be in-season in July?

AW: July brings us local fruit such as stone fruit: apricots and cherries, caneberries such as blackberries, Marionberries, boysenberries, and early raspberries; July also brings early blueberries and the end of strawberries.

BL: Apricots & cherries are stone fruit?

AW: a stone fruit or drupe describes fruit with a hard, stone-like pit, that has a seed inside, and is covered by the fleshy fruit & skin, which is the part we eat.

BL: What are blackberries & Marionberries?

AW: They are known as caneberries because they grow on a cane rather than a vine or trunk. They used to be called brambles but most commercial varieties now are thornless. They are an aggregate fruit meaning they are made up of a cluster of smaller fruits.

BL: And, all these great berries are upon us or nearly ...

AW: so get those flats of delicious berries! Jams & pies are on my mind!

BL: Well, berry good, thanks Allison. Join us again next time for Fruit Bites, brought to you by Valent. Until then, I'm Bob Larson.

https://www.thespruceeats.com/pacific-northwest-seasonal-fruits-and-vegetables-2217163

https://www.registerguard.com/special/20190627/tastings-berries-are-back-right-on-track

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