Last weekend we were in Chablis with some of our Wine Experience clients for the Harvest Experience Days. We followed the grapes journey from the vine to the fermentation tank!
We started the day in the vineyard, where we received our instructions on which grapes to harvest and which to leave.
Having been issued with our pair of secateurs and bucket, we spread out in twos between the vine rows to start harvesting. The grapes this year in Chablis are very healthy and the buckets were quickly filled. It wasn't long before the cries of "Porter" started ringing out in the vineyard.
We took it in turns to be a porter. Carrying a basket on our back, we went back and forth between the harvesters and the awaiting trailer.
A few hours harvesting makes for thirsty work, and we had well earnt our wine tasting at lunchtime! We started with a Petit Chablis, and then tasted a few different Chablis and Chablis Premier Cru before finishing with a Chablis Grand Cru Valmur. The tasting of the estate's wines continued over lunch.
In the afternoon we went to the Boissonneuse vineyard where the adopted vines are located. We took a few minutes to take a few souvenir pictures!
On the Saturday afternoon, some harvesting machines were in operation nearby, so went and took a closer look!
Back at the winery, we went to the cuverie to pick up the trail of the harvest. The grapes are loaded into a press which then extracts the juice form the each berry.
We then followed the pipes to the fermentation tank where the juice will start its transformation into wine. Here we learnt how the sugar will be broken down and turned into alcohol overt the coming weeks and months.
A final tasting to end the day - this time the juice from our harvest. At first sight, it's not the most appealing of prospects as you look at a murky brown liquid, but even those who hesitated to try were agreeably surprised! Sweet with a fresh taste, we just have to wait patiently until next winter until the wine will finally be ready!
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