Hail in Bordeaux – the video
June 3rd 2009, by GQ
Never mind the recession, the strong euro, the weak pound, increased duty costs and global over-supply of cheap, industrial wine. It’s back to nature, and sometimes nature can be cruel.
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Red Harvest in Full Swing
October 13th 2008, by GQ
It’s the week of harvesting most of our Merlot for the reds. The quality is surprisingly high with minimal rot, and I suspect that 2008 will be a far better vintage than we might have hoped for just a few weeks ago. This is the view of the vineyard at 7.45am, and it’s quite beautiful, with the fairly narrow, 1.5 metre wide rows of merlot we planted in 2002 in the foreground, and the sauvignon blanc down the hill towards the woods.
White Fermenting in Tank and Barrel
October 8th 2008, by GQ
While we prepare for harvesting the majority of the red, we’re busy in the chai with vinifying the white wine. Now that all the grapes have been pressed and the juice has settled, we’ve kicked off the fermentation. The old semillon from Les Trois Hectares has gone into French oak barrels, whereas most of the sauvignon blanc is fermenting in a chilled stainless steel tank. We’ve also got some sauvignon blanc in barrels too.
Making White: Don’t Try This at Home
October 1st 2008, by GQ
I’m glad the Inspecteur du Travail wasn’t here yesterday morning. I’m not sure he would have appreciated the children being around so much dangerous kit.
We have now finished harvesting the white. How we make it is pretty straightforward but there’s lots to be done. Most of the work has taken place in the vineyard, including cutting out, by hand, any bunches that are tainted by rot, but attention to detail is needed now at every stage.