A Good Year for Grapes

As I type this, four half gallons and one quart of grape juice are cooling in the kitchen, after their turn in the canner. I've heard pops that indicate they're sealing; and as always, a feeling of wonderful satisfaction comes over me, just from that quiet sound. I'd have to go back and add everything up again to make sure, but I think the total grape juice we canned this year is 17.25 gallons. Our grape harvest is officially over.

Last year, our harvest was dismal, resulting in only a few jars of canned juice that made it onto our cellar shelves. The year before was even worse: some critter(s) got into our grapes, just before we harvested them, and ate them all, resulting in major disappointment for all of us. Now, finally, we've had an exceptional harvest, and I'm all the more grateful for it because of the failure of the two previous crops.

"Many hands make light work," quote the wise old grannies; and as we worked up the grapes this year, I often remembered that saying. We did use many hands: my dad and my mom helped, as did Jeff's mom during her four-week stay with us, and so did Josiah and David who found new delight towards the end of the harvest in climbing ladders and stools to reach the grapes and clip the abundant clusters before dropping them in buckets. Even Tobin helped, doing his (small, but appreciated) part in pulling grapes off the clusters. And tonight as we wrapped up the juice-making operation, Jeff helped, too: ladling hot grapes and juice into the sieve, going to the cellar to retrieve empty jars for me, getting the canner and filling it with water, etc. When it comes to food preservation, I've realized how much of a difference it makes to have extra help along the way!

When I think back on this grape harvest, I'll remember...

...the joyful anticipation of walking down to the arbor, knowing that sweetness awaited us there.