Whatever happened to Vin de Noix

We just opened and filtered some of the 375 mL bottles that have been stored at the ranch for 16 years….. Green Walnuts were harvested in 2009 and soaked in my brother Paul’s delicious Syrah from his Clary Ranch Wines for 40 days before bottling. A lot of life has happened since. Some very, very good, Some not so. 

But here we are, all these years later and I’m pleased and surprised! Life is good and so is the Vin de Noix. Taste tested and approved by more than just me. Thanks to Scott for helping me solve the “what should we do with all this” problem and to Austin, his nephew, too. 

First signs of walnuts in the orchard!

They are here! Lots of doubles and triples. You can see the female flowers at right, as compared to a penny. The swollen base of the flower is where the nut will develop. Right now, they are smaller than President Lincoln's head. It will be a while before they really look like the green walnuts that we quarter, then cook, macerate, bake or pickle.....

"Behold, my friends, the spring is come; the earth has gladly received the embraces of the sun, and we shall soon see the results of their love!" ~ Sitting Bull

“The farmer has to be an optimist or he wouldn't still be a farmer.” - Will Rogers

It's time to get ready for our green walnut harvest. Though actual harvesting won't begin for a while, I've promised our customers that I would keep them informed of our progress here on my blog. The picture on the left shows the walnut catkins in early to middle April. They somewhat resemble miniature pine cones at this stage, only 1 inch in length. The picture on the far right was taken just days ago, April 28th. Notice the cluster of male catkins. They are about three inches long and bear a large number of closely packed, minute developing flowers.

When asked the question, "When can we order?" or "How many pounds will we be able to put up online at our LocalHarvest storefront?" I have to answer, "it depends." My El Dorado County Master Gardener friends will understand the significance of that answer! It didn't look like the catkins were ready to release pollen and the female flowers weren't yet fully developed, so the recent rains and cold weather probably didn't compromise pollination. Will Rogers was right. We are optimists.

"Don't trouble trouble, till trouble troubles you." ~ Grandma Klare

The cold, wet weather this year should be good for our walnuts. They got more than their required chilling hours and all this water percolating deep down into the soil is certainly welcome! The Black Walnut trees are already leafed out.
Catkins can be seen on the English walnut trees. (Look closely and you'll see them hanging down off the twigs.) We're lucky to have late blooming Franquette variety as it snowed this past week. (Didn't stick, but still darn cold.) Wildflowers are now beginning to bloom. So beautiful here in Fair Play this time of year.

It is supposed to rain this week. We sure hope the rain doesn't interfere with pollination. But like Grandma used to say, no sense worrying about things till you need to. I'll be watching closely for those tiny little green walnuts......

108 Years Later - The Work Continues

30 years ago this summer, my father built a little cabin on the southwestern-most corner of the original ranch. 6 acres of Franquette walnut trees were put in by my parents, Paul and Alice Clary, shortly after. Each year, after we harvested the BIG orchard, we would harvest "our" orchard. Over the years, as more and more of our spare time was required on the BIG orchard, "our" little orchard was a bit neglected. What would we do? Read more about how a dream to keep the ranch for another hundred years led us to green walnut harvests on our website: www.claryridgeranch.com

We are busy fertilizing and tending to the trees that aren't so little anymore. They yielded a small but healthy green harvest this past June. We sold them locally and via LocalHarvest. There is a market for these green walnuts, throughout the United States and even Canada. You can make your own with our green walnuts, but we believe you'll love Clary Ridge Ranch Vin de Noix, made in collaboration with my brother, Paul Clary, Owner and Winemaker of Clary Ranch Wines.

Ready or Noix

This is the first year that I haven't personally stirred, checked, monitored, shaken, my entire batch of vin de noix. I do have a mini batch macerating on my counter at the cabin. (Thank goodness for air conditioning!) Also some deliciously spicy nocino turning a lovely motor oil-ish color. Soon it is time to connect with the winery where our 2000 green walnuts are steeping in a lovely Cabernet Sauvignon from Mendocino on it's journey to becoming Vin De Noix. Time to attend to the next part of the process. It will be time to remove the walnuts, filter and fortify. My brother, Paul Clary, is my guide on this journey. He is an accomplished winemaker who owns Clary Ranch Wines We will bottle in a 375 ml Antique green bottle. Karen Bertolini, of Paragon Labels, went to high school with me. She suggested taller rather than wide, so that the info all shows when you see the bottle on the shelf. She also suggested that I take a look at port bottles at BevMo for label inspiration. I saw a couple of appealing labels. The internet has more images than BevMo. I like the shape of this label from France. I have had to actively turn off that compulsive section of my brain that spent countless hours drawing and erasing. My brother-in-law, David Macy, is an artist and I will leave that to him.

The other "W"

I've made Biscotti al Nocine and I've finished pickling the walnuts. They are interesting, dark brown with a sweet, malt vinegar-y taste and hints of the same spices used in Nocino. I imagine that they would be best used as a garnish or flavoring, in small amounts. They have a strong, unusual flavor. I read that pickled walnuts are an ingredient in Worchestershire Sauce, a homemade version. The source said the taste of pickled walnuts resembles lumpy worchestershire. Here is an interesting link with assorted recipes for worchestershire, along with a recipe for walnut ketchup that uses pickled walnuts. You'll find this quote on that same page:

"In conclusion, pickled walnuts are perhaps the most ancient and widely consumed condiment in the world, thanks in large part to the British, who took it almost everywhere they colonized. As a result of the cultural diversity in the history of this "King of Pickles", there is a pickled walnut recipe to suit almost everyone's taste, whether vegetarian, carnivore, or just a sweet tooth. Pickled walnuts are an acquired taste and are not for everyone, but this is actually a good thing: There probably aren't enough to go around!"

I will share my 7 pints of pickled walnuts. Next year, I want to cut more of the ends off..... I wonder if using alum would make them more firm? Also, making sure that the blossom end is completely removed, like when pickling cucumbers. Perhaps however, the ideal pickled walnut really should taste like lumpy worchestershire! I think I prefer Vin de Noix!

2009 - Meanwhile, back at the ranch.....

We pause in our historical narrative of work....

I've just started my home batches of all things green walnuts. I've got Nocino, Vin de Noix (aka Perigord Port), Biscotti, and this year, making it's first appearance..... Pickled Walnuts. I was recently certified as an El Dorado County Master Food Preserver and I am putting my new found knowledge to good use.

Here is the first step in the process of pickling the green walnuts. 1) Pick. They are picked when they are one to one and 1/2 inches in diameter. Our family picked. It is much like picking apples, except we only picked from what we could reach. Dad, Paul Clary, found he could pick much higher in the tree using his ATV. We will utilize more pickers and perhaps a cherry picker next year. Another possibility is to stand in the back of a pickup bed truck. Any who...... we could have picked much more had we had these ideas before we picked.

2) The second step is to use a fork to make holes in the walnuts, place them in a quart jar and then fill them with a salt (or brine) solution. They will now sit for one week and we then drain the and subsequently repeat the process. To be continued