Picking our Zinfandel Grapes

Proud Farmer Jeff and I picked our Zinfandel grapes on Sunday. We heard that it was going to rain this week, so we hoofed it out to pick. Farmer Jeff went up to the local market frequented by the pickers (and us!) to buy a harvesting knife named "Red Rooster". We thought that was fitting now that we have FIVE roosters! (Still haven't given Duchess/Duke away and just this morning Queen Sophia started crowing again, so she/he is on his way out the door!!!)

I love this picture of Farmer Jeff. It reminds me of the Slaying of the Gorgon, all the way down to the knife!

Farmer Jeff and I ended up picking many buckets of our Zin grapes. He hand crushed them, let them sit on the skin for 24 hours, and then we pressed and strained them to make jelly!

We ended up with 7 gallons of lovely Zinfandel Rose Grape Jelly. It is the color of a rose, but that is just fine with us!

We have friends with some leftover grapes on their Zin vines and I think we will be picking those any day. More Jelly!!! Zin needs more Zinfandel grape jelly so they can put their famous Warm Zinfandel Grape Jelly Donuts back on the menu. Yes, these are the very donuts that Giada ate while visiting Zin for her Giada's Weekend Getaway show!