Adopt a Vine and Make Your Own Wine

with the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience

Visit www.gourmetodyssey.com for more information

Archive from November 2020

Our wine experience days at the wineries in image. Adopt some vines and make your own organic wine


It’s time to choose the winner of the 2020 My Vine photo competition!  Each year the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience apprentice wine-makers get the chance to meet their adopted vines during the experience days at the winery.  Despite this very strange year where we haven’t been able to organise all of the days as initially planned, the clients who managed to come got stuck in, and we loved receiving their photos to remind us of the good times we spent together!

Here are the photos that were selected for the final. There will be two winners.One selected by the Gourmet Odyssey team for the originality of the photo, and the other for the one that gets the most “likes” on our Facebook page. It’s now up to you to choose your favourite!

 

Winery tour and wine-making experience in France

 

To view the photos, please visit our Facebook page and vote before 12:00 on the 15th December!  Be careful to like the individual photo that you wish to vote for and not the entire album.

The two winners will receive a magnum of wine from the winery where they have their Wine Experience.
We look forward to revealing the winners on the 15th December!

The Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience is designed to discover the work that goes into making a good bottle of organic wine.  You can visit one of our partner wineries for one or more days and get involved in pruning the vines, harvesting the grapes, or learning about the work in the cellar to ferment, blend and age the wines.

Learn more about our organic Wine Experience gifts.

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An original organic Christmas wine gift, personalised and delivered to you


Are you looking for a special wine-related Christmas present this year?  Adopt some vines in France and give a unique experience for a wine lover.  With the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience you can get behind the scenes, become an apprentice organic wine-maker for a year, and discover the work that goes into making your own personalised bottles of organic wine. And by doing so, you’ll also be supporting small, independent organic winemakers.

Special Christmas gift for wine lovers: adopt a vine

What’s included in the Wine Experience Christmas gift box?

Choose from the different options available and order your adopt-a-vine Christmas gift on our website. You can choose the region, the winery (all organically certified), the number of vines to adopt, and how many wine experience days at the vineyard to include.  We’ll send the welcome gift pack to you, or directly to the recipient to open on Christmas day, containing a personalised vine adoption certificate, some wine accessories, and an access code to the private customer portal to get the adventure started straightaway.

The recipient will then receive news, photos, and updates from the wine-maker as the vines grow, the grapes are harvested, and the juice made into wine in the cellar. At the end of the wine-making year, his or her organic wine, made from the grapes in the vineyard where his or her adopted vines are located, will be bottled, complete with personalised wine labels denoting the name of the wine that your lucky recipient chooses!

It’s also possible to go to the winery, meet the wine-makers, and participate in wine experience days to learn about the key stages involved in the making of your wine. The Wine Experience Days can be included in the Christmas gift pack, or added later.

Oenology gift for Christmas: rent a vine

The Wine Experience Days take place on the weekends from 09:30 to 16:00, with wine tasting and lunch included for two people. There are three different choices. The Discovery Experience Days concentrate on the work in the vineyard before the harvest, the Harvest Experience Days get you involved in picking the grapes and teach you about the first stages of fermentation, and the Vinification Experience Days are made up of practical workshops to hone wine-tasting skills, and to learn about ageing, blending and bottling wines. You also learn how the wine-makers work organically, and what’s at stake in doing so. They are fun, informative, and moments rich in sharing that make you think a little differently when you open your next bottle of wine.

What makes the Wine Experience an extra-special Christmas gift?

Not only is it an original Christmas gift for a wine lover, it’s a present that supports independent organic wine-makers and small business, something that’s appreciated even more during these challenging times!

rganic wine gift box for Christmas

We’ve chosen to only work with organically or biodynamically certified wine-makers, all of whom have had their wines selected and awarded by the leading wine guides and press. We picked them for their friendliness, and enthusiasm for sharing their knowledge and love of their profession, essential factors needed to ensure an exceptional and unforgettable experience.

But don’t just take our word for it, read the customer feedback. For over 10 years now, we have developed and delivered a quality service, creating strong bonds and friendships with our partner winemakers and customers alike.

And it’s a no risk Christmas gift, because if you’re not sure which Wine Experience to choose, the recipient can always change the winery, type of day, or vintage by contacting us. The Wine Experience Days can also be carried over to the following year if needed.

Order your Adopt-a-Vine Christmas Gift in a few clicks

No need to go to the shops! Order your Wine Experience Christmas gift online, and we’ll take care of the rest:

  • The welcome gift pack will be sent out within 24 hours, Monday to Friday
  • The vine adoption certificate and activation code will be sent by email to the buyer
  • Gift wrapping and personalised message option available
  • Option to pay in 3 instalments
  • Flexible. The recipient can change the options or carry days over if needed

The Christmas Wine Experience welcome pack will be sent to the address of your choosing, containing a few wine accessory gifts; a DropStop, re-usable glass wine stopper, wine cooling bag, vine adoption certificate, and a personalised guide to get the present started!

Find out more about the Wine Experience Christmas present

Visit our website for more information about the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience or to place an order.

Any questions? We’re available from 09:00 to 18:00, Monday to Friday by phone on 01 46 27 05 92 within France, or on +33 1 46 27 05 92 from outside France, or through our contact page.

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Make your own organic wine in the Terrasses du Larzac vineyards of southern France


We’re delighted to add a new partner winery in the Languedoc region of the south of France. You can now adopt your own organic vines in the beautiful Terrasses du Larzac wine-growing region as Château de Jonquières joins the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience!

The magnificent Château de Jonquières is one of the oldest family-run wineries in the Languedoc, and has been in the same family for over 900 years!  Charlotte and Clément de Béarn, the winery’s 32nd generation of winemakers, took over the running of the vineyard and wine-making operation at Château de Jonquières in 2014 from Charlotte’s parents, and continue to strive to make the best possible organic wines from the different vineyard plots that surround the listed château.  It’s the perfect place, with the perfect hosts, to learn more about all of the hard work and skill that goes into making great organic wines.

We got together with Charlotte and Clément to prepare this profile that we share with you so that you too can get to know our new partner winemakers.

New adopt-a-vine experience in the Terrasses du Larzac

Charlotte and Clément, how long have you been wine-makers?

Charlotte : I grew up here in Jonquières and then studied business in Paris, Ireland, Athens, Reims and then closer to home in Pezenas for the wine-making studies.

Clément : I grew up in Montpellier, where I also studied, before working in Marseille, Lyon and Sydney.
After a summer working together to manage the table d’hôte at Château de Jonquières, we decided to take over the wine-making operations at the age of 24, just after our studies ended. When we decided to do so, Clément had never stepped a foot into a vineyard, and it was less than two years that we had been together. When we announced our intentions to my parents, they were very pleasantly surprised and accompanied us as we set out on our journey, whilst remaining very flexible and letting us know that we would always back track if needed.

Looking back, we don’t regret for one second having started so young.  We were full of energy, even if we were definitely a little naïve!

What has been your journey since you took over the winery?  

We took over from Charlotte’s parents in 2014 by buying the vineyards, buildings, material, and stock. We live with our two daughters in the old estate manager’s quarters of the château. We’re completely independent of Charlotte’s parents, but all 6 of us live in the same place, together with the vines, our vegetable patch and chicken coup.

We became organically certified and produce 30 000 bottles or red, white, and rosé wines, which we sell to wine-merchants, restaurants, private customers and export.

We have introduced commented guides for the château and its history, the cellar and wine tastings. We also offer an ephemeral bistrot each summer for the last 4 years in the courtyard, and organise a concert or play every two years. We have also taken some bookings for corporate seminars.

What is your best memory so far concerning the winery?

We are already very fortunate to have a job that is varied and hands-on, where we don’t notice the time fly by. We’ve also successfully managed to create an environment that allows us to live independently, and to welcome our visitors and clients to the winery.

But our proudest moment is the first harvest from the plot of Grenache blanc that we planted in 2017.  A fantastic moment with our baby vines!

What are your principal projects or challenges for 2021?

We’re looking to further develop the White Label cuvée, a wine that is completely off the charts that we launched on a small scale two years ago. It’s a wine made using 100% Carignan grapes that were planted by my great-grandmother 80 years ago.  The wine is then aged in oak “demi-muid” 500 litre barrels, a type of large barrel that was originally used to transport wine. Like a vinyl record that is pressed in a very small number of copies, the White Label, is for the moment a very limited series wine.

We also have plans to replant a vineyard using massally selected vines, taking cuttings from our best vines to transmit their genes, rather than using cloned vines. We’ll use our older vines that are more than 40 years old, because they have a richer genetic make-up.  It will enable our vines to be hardier and to redevelop some of the characteristics that have been lost little by little with the use of cloned wines.  For example we’re hoping they’ll benefit from maturing more slowly, and being more resistant to coulure during the flowering period.

There are also a few challenges to contend with.  After two years with harvests 40% less than usual, we worry about the changing climate and what impact that will have.  We’re also worried about wine sales in light of the Covid-19 situation and the international market which is struggling.  But we’ll get through it, adapt, and continue to refine our wines to try and express who we are through them.

A question that our clients often ask. What do winemakers do when they have a little time to themselves?

Clément : I like to cook. Bread, cakes, bœuf bourguignon, and other dishes that I like to pair with wines that I’ve discovered in other regions during my travels!

Charlotte : I started jogging a year ago.  I’ve done my first trail and want to do more!

Learn more about adopting vines at Château de Jonquières

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The Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience

Adopt a Vine in France and Follow the Making of Your Own Wine !

From € 169

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