The sun was out for the Harvest Experience Days last weekend at Domaine Chapelle in Santenay. We were there for the first days of this year's harvest, and we got involved in each of the harvesting stages from picking the grapes to putting them in the vats.

 

 

The day started in the Clos des Cornières vineyard, the plot where the adopted vines of our apprentice winemakers are located. Before getting down to the serious business of the day, we took a few minutes to find our vines and mark the occasion with a few photos.

Jean-François Chapelle, the winemaker and owner of the winery, showed us how to harvest; which grapes to pick and which are better left behind due to rot or a lack of maturity. Armed with a pair of secateurs and a crate, we spread out, two people to each row, to start harvesting the grapes. The harvest is looking good, and the warm, sunny weather of the last couple of weeks has done the world of good to reduce the acidity and increase the sugar levels in the grapes.

Each pair picked to their own rhythm, and once the crate was full, they brought it back to end of the row to exchange it for a new one. Fortunately, the vines in the Clos de Cornières are more heavily laden than last year, so the crates quickly filled up!

After the morning's work, we returned to the garden of the château for a well earned aperitif - a nice fresh Santenay Saint Jean white wine to refresh the palate!

We continued the wine tasting with some red wines from the estate over lunch, which was served in the harvester's refectory. We tasted a Santenay Clos des Cornières, Santenay Premier Cru Les Gravières, before finishing with an Aloxe Corton. After lunch, we continued in the steps of the grapes. First stop, the harvest reception hall. Here, the crates of picked grapes are unloaded from the vans, and then emptied one by one onto the sorting table to remove any unwanted grapes that went unnoticed in the vineyard. Yannick, the winery's Technical Director, showed us how to do this important work.

At the end of the sorting table, the grape bunches pass through a de-stemming machine to separate the berries from the stalk. The grapes fall into a chute that carries them down into the fermentation hall where a trolley is waiting to transport them on the final leg of their journey up a conveyor belt and into the vat. Jean-François explained how the sugar in the grapes will ferment over the coming days to transform the grape juice into wine.

The day ended with a final tasting session to taste the grape juice that we had harvested from our vineyard. The next chance we will get to taste it will be during one of the Vinification Experience Days at the start of next year.

Many thanks to Domaine Chapelle for letting us take a sneak peek behind the scenes during the busy harvest time, and to all of the participants for their good cheer and hard work!

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We had a lovely sunny day to start the harvest at Domaine la Cabotte last Saturday. Following an introduction to the winery and an update on the 2014 campaign so far, we made our way through the vineyard to harvest the Syrah plot of vines that will be used in the Garance wine, which is the chosen wine for the Gourmet Odyssey clients.

 

 

Once Eric and his wife Marie-Pierre, the owners of the winery, had explained to us how to pick the grapes, we spread out among the vine rows in pairs. This year, the harvest was made easier due to the excellent condition of the grapes, with practically nothing to sort or leave behind.

The buckets filled up quickly, and by the end of the morning we had filled two trailers. We followed our harvest to the chai to assist with the de-stemming, before the grapes were put into the vat. The berries are separated from the stalks and then, once in the vat, will start to slowly ferment. It was then time to refresh ourselves with a tasting of some of the estate's wines.

After lunch, which was prepared by Marie-Pierre, we headed back out into the vineyard. We learnt how to taste the grapes to decide whether they are ready for picking or if they need more time to mature. It's all a matter of the colour of the skin, the taste in the mouth, and what the pips look like. It all seems very easy to Eric, but for the rest of us, the nuances are often very subtle!

Whilst tasting the grapes, we took sample bunches from a number of different vine plots of Mourvèdre, Grenache and Syrah. We then mixed these together in the cellar to estimate the sugar levels and hence the potential volume of alcohol of the wine, if it were blended with these three grape varietals. It's quite a simple technique, but one that has to be repeated often and for each plot during the harvest time, to ensure the quality of the juice and of the wine that it will produce.

We finished the day by tasting the grape juice produced from the Viognier vine plot, which had started its fermentation two days beforehand. It was still very sweet, but had already started to fizz a little. After a few words on how the estate is managed organically and biodynamically, we had spent a very full and informative day.

Many thanks to all the participants for their questions and enthusiasm, and of course for the snip of their secateurs!

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Come July and August, the winemaker has usually finished the bulk of the work in the vineyard, and it is one of the rare times when a few well earned days holiday can be taken. During this time the grapes slowly mature, without the need for human intervention. The winemaker has always one eye to the sky though, hoping that the weather remains good until the harvest has finished! With the mixed summer that we've had in France this year, it hasn't always been the case, and some additional treatments have been necessary because of the rain, notably in Bordeaux and Burgundy.

The wineries are a hive of activity at the moment to get ready for the harvest. The teams of harvesters need to be recruited for the vineyards that will be manually harvested and the harvesting machines reserved for the others. Recruiting is not always an easy task as the winemakers are looking for people that are available for the whole harvest period, which can last between 1 and 3 weeks depending on the region, winery and year, and for people who are flexible in the dates because you have to adapt the days and hours worked according to the weather.

The fermentation hall and cellar needs to be prepared for the arrival of the new harvest. Sometimes that means bottling the previous vintage to free up space in the vats, but in any case the vats and empty barrels need to be cleaned, the cellar tidied up to make space for the machines used during the harvest such as the sorting table, de-stemming machine, press, or conveyor belts used to carry the picked grapes. Buckets, hops, and secateurs need to be found, and all of the equipment thoroughly cleaned. It's the winemaker's version of a spring clean!

The most difficult thing left to do is to estimate the start date of the harvest. In the northern hemisphere, they generally start between August and October, and can even take place a couple of times a year in certain regions close to the equator where the cold and hot seasons are less marked. This year, for the most part, the harvest will start a little earlier than usual, and some of our partner winemakers will start the harvest this week.

Nowadays, the winemaker is equipped to analyse the maturity of the grapes to help decide when to begin harvesting. A mustimeter enables the density of the must in the grapes to be measured, giving an estimation of the alcoholic volume of the wine that it produces. It's important to monitor the alcoholic volume because minimum and maximum levels are highly regulated in the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée system.

But the most trustworthy and reliable tools used by the winemakers remain their eyes and mouth. As the harvest approaches, they roam the vineyards to look at and taste the grapes to see if they have reached optimum maturity. It is after all a personal choice by the winemaker for each plot!

So the much awaited moment of the harvest is now upon us, so it's time to start snipping the secateurs, but that will be the subject of a future article! If you would like to have a go at harvesting yourself, you can always participate in a Gourmet Odyssey Harvest Experience Day!

Also read "A brief history of grape harvesting"

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The French word for harvesting grapes, "vendanges", comes from the term "vendémiaire" which refers to the months of September and October in the republican calendar of 1792. But well before this, the first traces of vines being cultivated date back to the Bronze Age (around 2 200 to 800 years BC) in Israel and Palestine. At that time, the first known references appear of grapes being harvested by sedentary populations as opposed to nomads.

Later in France, the first traces of cultivating grapes date to the Iron Age (around 800 to 52 years BC) in the Vaucluse, Hérault and Gard regions in the south of France. At this time vines were cultivated and a harvest planned, all with the objective of making wine.

Historically, the date was set for the beginning of the harvest in each region, which marked the start of the harvest and often gave rise to lively parties to celebrate its beginning. However, once the start date had been set, it was always up to the winemaker to decide when to actually start the harvest depending on the acidity and sugar levels in the grapes in the different vineyard plots. There are still a few remaining annual harvest celebrations such as those in Montmartre, Paris or Banyuls.

A few sayings have been passed on down through the generations, such as the one that says the harvest will begin 100 days after the vines have flowered. Having asked our partner winemakers if there is any truth in it, it would appear that the start of the harvest is very close, but it rarely falls exactly 100 days later, the weather having being fairly fickle the last few years!

Another custom that has survived despite the mechanisation of harvesting in some wineries, is the arrival of seasonal staff to help out with the harvest. It is the team of harvesters that make the atmosphere so lively during this time. If you are looking to get involved in the harvest, many winemakers are looking for motivated and hard working people. You normally need to be available for the duration of the harvest, and be flexible about the days which you work, because the decision of whether to harvest or not is often taken on the eve of the following day.

Or if you prefer to start with just one day, why not participate in one of the Gourmet Odyssey Harvest Experience Days!

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Once the vines have flowered, the grape berries will slowly grow until they reach full size, and will then ripen. To help them, the winemaker can choose to trim the vines to remove some of the branches to better manage the flow of sap, and to direct it towards the grape bunches. This also helps remove some of the young vegetation which is not yet able to help ripen the grapes via photosynthesis. Less foliage will also help the air circulate more freely around the grapes which help protect against disease, and also means that the organic treatments will be more effective. Trimming is done mechanically for the most part.

With the same goal in mind, the shoots that sprout from between the leaf branches can also be removed. These will not produce any fruit and will compete for energy from the plant. It's done by hand and is a long and laborious process, so is not often undertaken.

More commonly some of the leaves are removed from the lower branches to improve air flow and to help the grapes get more sunlight and hence ripen more easily. It also helps the harvesters pick the grapes more easily and reduces the risk of rot. However this is not done in every region and depends on the weather, because if there is too much sun and hot weather, then the grapes need the protection of the leaves to stop them burning. Removing the leaves can be done manually or mechanically for trained vines by sucking up the leaves, blowing them off or burning them off thermally.

At the same time, the vines continue to be treated as necessary and the weeding continues. With organic farming, weeding is done by tilling the soil between the vines. The organic treatments are contact treatments and stay on the outside of the plant, contrary to protecting the plant from within with chemical treatments. This means that if it rains, they get washed off, which can mean that the vines have to be treated more often than with conventional means.

Closer to the harvest, if the winemaker has the luxury of having too many grapes, s/he may decide to reduce the yield to improve the quality of the harvest. This is done by picking some of the bunches that are not yet mature. This is sometimes called a green harvest. Normally the winemaker has already tried to manage the quantity of grapes through pruning and de-budding.

There's usually some time available for the winemaker to take some well earned rest whilst waiting for the grapes to ripen. But the winemaker always has one eye on the sky hoping to avoid any thunder or hail storms.

More articles on working in the vineyard:

Pruning

De-budding and training the vines

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We were at Château Beau Rivage near Bordeaux last weekend for a wine Discovery Experience Day. With the winemaker, Christine Nadalié, by our sides the aim of the day was to learn more about all the work carried out in the vineyard to produce the best possible grapes come harvest time.

 

 

The day started with a little walk in the vineyard, during which we made several stops so that Christine could explain the characteristics of the different grape varieties and the terroir. She brought us up to speed on the work already accomplished in the vineyard since last winter, and she showed us a plot that has recently been replanted with vines.

Since our last visit in May, the vines have grown lots and the flowering period has been and gone. This is a very important stage in determining the potential yield of the harvest to com, and generally it went well, with just a little bit of millerandage when the flowers didn't pollinate properly. Millerandage causes some of the grape berries to not develop to the normal size, and so smaller grapes are interspersed with normal sized grapes.

At the far end of the vineyard, we arrived at the plot of Merlot where the adopted vines are located, and so we took a few minutes to snap some photos. The vegetation continues to grow rampantly, and so it has to be managed and kept under control with the help of training wires. Christine showed us how to raise the wires, and then to place any falling branches in between them. We then split up into pairs to have a go ourselves. As we moved down the rows, we also removed any unwanted shoots and growth from the trunks of the vines, which otherwise waste some of the plant's energy.

Back at the winery, we tasted some of the different wines and vintages and enjoyed the winemaker's meal. We continued the day in the chai where Christine explained how the grapes will be received during the harvest, and how the sugar is transformed into alcohol during fermentation.

We then went through to the barrel room to see where the wines rest during the ageing period. Here, Christine explained the influence that the oak barrels have on the wine, and answered our questions on many topics ranging from blending to biodynamic wine-making. Many thanks to all of our participants and to Christine for having shared the day with us.

See you soon for the harvest!

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As our guests noted, Domaine la Cabotte is to be found in the middle of the vines, surrounded by wooded hills, vineyards and the Mont Ventoux in the distance. What better place to discover the profession of wine making. The aim of the Discovery Experience Day is to understand the work carried out in the vineyard from winter right up to the harvest the following autumn, and so we began the day in the vineyard.

Eric recounted the history of the winery and the establishment of the Massif d'Uchaux wine appellation. He then brought us up to speed on the work that Marie-Pierre and he had already done since last winter, covering such topics as pruning and the flowering of the vines. He then showed us how to raise the training wires to better space and support the weight of the vines as they grow.

The training wires had just been raised, but had not yet been attached. Armed with handfuls of clips, we clipped the wires together to keep the vine branches in place between the wires. It can get very hot in the middle of the vineyard, particularly in the Rhône Valley, and luckily Marie-Pierre had brought some home-made drinks to share with us! After this full morning, we were glad to find some shade back at the winery to taste some of the estate's wines and enjoy the meal prepared by Marie-Pierre.

We spent the afternoon in the cool of the chai, where Eric talked to us about the different herbal treatments made of horsetail, valerian, stinging nettles and the like, that serve to help stimulate the growth of the plant. He also showed us how the soil is vitalised using a preparation of cow manure that has been buried in cow horns according to the biodynamic principles.

Eric finished the day by briefly explaining the key steps in fermenting the wine, something that we will go into more detail about during the Vinification Experience Days.

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The 2012 vintage of Gabriel was one of just three wines to be "highly recommended", and the wine chosen for the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience, Garance, was also included in the "recommended" category for the 2012 vintage.

Decanter noted that when choosing Côtes du Rhône Villages wines, it pays to know which appellations to look out for, and they concentrated their article on the most notable villages and the ones that are on the rise. The Massif d'Uchaux is one of the newer Côtes du Rhône Villages appellations, and according to Decanter is deserving to be much better known for the quality of their wines. We certainly agree, and with Domaine la Cabotte leading the way, it's surely just a matter of time.

See more accolades for our partners  

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If your Dad is interested in wine but has never had the opportunity to get involved in making wine with a winemaker, the Gourmet Oydssey Wine Experience will enable him to learn first-hand about all of the work in the vineyard and cellar. He'll be the adoptive owner of his vines for a winemaking year and, thanks to the newsletters and photos, he'll follow all of the steps in making his personalised wine.

He can also get stuck in and learn by participating in working at the winery for one of the Discovery, Harvest or Vinification Experience Days. He'll visit one of our seven partner vineyards and spend the day with the winemaker.

All of our partner wineries are organically certified, and are chosen for the quality of their wine, and the enthusiasm of the winemakers in sharing their passion for their profession. It's an unforgettable experience that will enable your father to open his bottles of wine in good company and explain how they were made.

Our welcome gift packs contain a sommelier's apron, a DropStop, adoption certificate and a brochure that explains the experience. They are delivered within 2 to 5 days depending on the delivery country, and for any last minute gifts, we'll send a copy of the certificate by email ahead of the welcome pack.

And the little added bonus, is that the Experience Days are valid for two people to share the fun!

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One of the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience gifts will enable the newlyweds to understand all of the work that the winemaker undertakes in the vineyard and the cellar when making their personalised bottles of wine. They will follow all of the key stages via newsletters and photos as their vintage unfolds.

The newlyweds can roll up their sleeves and get involved themselves if you include in their Wine Experience one of the Discovery, Harvest or Vinification Experience Days. They'll get to visit one of our seven partner vineyards to participate in the pruning, de-budding, harvesting or discovering the art of ageing and blending wines in the cellar. The winemakers will be there to explain their work, share their passion, and of course to let you taste their wines during the winemakers meal.

All of our partner wineries are organically certified, and are chosen for the quality of their wines, and the enthusiasm of the winemakers in explaining the intricacies of their profession. This means that the newlyweds will embark on an unforgettable experience to follow the making of their wine, from the same year as their wedding.

The welcome gift packs are delivered in 2 to 4 working days depending on the country of delivery, and for any last minute gifts, we can email the adoption certificate ahead of the welcome pack.

The Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience is an original idea for a wedding present for wine lovers and those curious to learn the secrets behind making a quality wine. An original wine gift that will last long in the memory.

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The yield at Domaine Stentz-Buecher is voluntarily kept well below the maximum authorised levels, something that the adoptive vine owners at the winery learnt more about last Saturday by getting stuck into some serious de-budding.

 

 

The Gourmet Odyssey Discovery Experience days teach you about all the work carried out in the vineyard from pruning right up until the grapes are ripe enough to be harvested.  Following the introductions from the winemakers, Céline and Stéphane, we headed off to the "Rosenberg" vineyard, where we paid a visit to our adopted vines.

Jean-Jacques, Céline and Stéphane's Dad, explained in detail all of the various stages in working the vines.

He particularly showed us how to de-bud the vines, which involves removing the double buds and excess shoots that grow on the trunks of the vines.  If left, these take away some of the plants energy which can be better used to produce nice ripe grapes.

With extra care as it is the plot of vines which will be used to make our wine, we got stuck into the de-budding!

We then walked through the vineyard a little to admire the fantastic views of the Alsace landscape and we could even see as far as the Alps.  Back at the winery, we tasted some of the wineries wines over lunch.

In the afternoon, Stéphane explained his philosophy of making wines, and took us on a tour of the fermentation halls to introduce us to the principal stages of vinification.

A full day, and very instructive thanks to the many questions and enthusiasm of our participants, and not forgetting our passionate winemakers of course!   

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You need good grapes to make good wine.  That's what the participants of the Wine Discovery Experience Day learnt last weekend at Domaine Chapelle.  Jean-François, the winemaker and owner of the winery, and his Technical Director, Yannick, welcomed us for the day to share their passion for their profession.

During the Discovery Experience Days, we learn all about the key stages in working in the vineyard to get the best possible grapes come harvest time.  And the best way to learn is by having a go yourself!  So, after an introduction to the winery, its wines, and the Burgundy terroir, Jean-François led us out into the vineyard.

We took a few minutes to find our adopted vines before Yannick explained all of the work that has been carried out in the vineyard since pruning.  We are now finishing the de-budding phase in the pinot noir vineyard plots, which involves removing any superfluous buds or shoots.  And we have just started to train the chardonnay vines; which involves ensuring that the shoots grow between the training wires and then clipping the wires together to help the vines support the weight of the foliage and fruit.

Having learnt the theory from Jean-François and Yannick, we got stuck in and had a go ourselves.  A little hesitant at first in front of the vines as we didn't want to cause them any damage, but we soon got the hang of it.
A few hours later we were back at the winery, ready to taste some wine!  We tasted a Santenay white wine, before tasting a Burgundy red, a Santenay Clos des Cornières and a Santenay Premier Cru Les Gravières.

To finish the day, Yannick and Jean-François took us down into the fermentation hall and cellar, where they introduced us to the technical side of making and ageing wine, something that we will develop further during the Vinification Experience Days.
To sum up the day in the words of Jean-François: the work in the vineyard before the harvest is essential, because even a good winemaker finds it difficult to make a good wine with poor quality grapes.

A good winemaker is therefore a good farmer, and after their hard work and enthusiasm in the vineyard, our apprentice winemakers would wholeheartedly agree!  Many thanks to our participants for a very enjoyable weekend!

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Last Saturday, we spent a lovely sunny day in the Rhone Valley at Domaine la Cabotte.  We were there for a Wine Discovery Experience Day to learn more about the work in the vineyard up to the harvest of the grapes.

 

 

Accompanied by the winerys owners, Marie-Pierre and Eric, we started the day in the vineyard.  Eric showed us the differences between the grape varietals cultivated on the estate, and explained the different methods of pruning that are used.

It's currently the end of the de-budding period, a key stage in controlling the growth of the vines and in improving the quality of the harvest to come.  Eric and Marie-Pierre had left us a small plot to work on, and so after we had received our instructions, we spread out among the rows to remove the unwanted buds and shoots.

The leaves are already well developed on the vines.  To better protect them and to help the plant support their weight, the training wires need to be raised and the branches placed between them.  In teams of three, we set to work.

The vines are just beginning to flower, a critical moment in determining the potential quantity of this years harvest.  Eric showed us a vine in flower and we took in its delicate aroma.

Back at the winery, we had earned our aperitif! We tasted a white wine from the winery, followed by the "Garance" red, which is the wine chosen for the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience.  We continued the wine tasting during the meal that we ate in the shade of the chai.

After lunch, we headed to the vineyard where the adopted vines are located.  From here we enjoyed the nice view of Mont Ventoux and the Dentelles de Montmirail.

Domaine la Cabotte is organically and biodynamically certified.  We finished the day with Eric explaining the philosophy behind biodynamic farming, and how the work in the vineyard is managed according to the lunar calendar.  It's a topic that leaves no one indifferent!
Many thanks to Marie-Pierre and Eric for having shared their passion for their profession with us, and to all of our participants for their good cheer.

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We spent last weekend in the Bordeaux vineyard for a couple of Discovery Experience Days at Château Beau Rivage.  With Christine Nadalié at our side, we headed out into the vineyard to learn more about the profession and work of a winemaker.

 

 

The winery grows five different grape varietals in the vineyard, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot.  Christine showed us the difference between the vines and talked to us about grafting.

Before getting down to work, we took a few minutes to visit our adopted vines, and to encourage them to produce a good harvest!  It was also a good occasion to pose for a few pictures!

Christine told us about all of the work that has been done in the vineyard during the winter, notably pruning.  The buds have already burst and the first signs of the future grape bunches are forming on the vines.  It's now time to de-bud and remove any unwanted shoots that have sprouted from the trunk or roots of the vines.  This will help the vines to concentrate their energy on the future fruit-bearing branches.  Christine showed us how to do it, and then we rolled up our sleeves to get stuck in!

During the morning, Christine also answered a flow of questions on a range of topics including organic and biodynamic farming, harvesting and the appellation system to name a few.

By lunchtime, we had earned our aperitif, and we started with a nice cold rosé before tasting a range of the winery's red wines during lunch.

In the afternoon, we visited the fermentation hall and barrel room to get an introduction into the winemaking and ageing side of things.  Christine told us about the stages of fermentation and explained the influence that the barrels have on the taste and structure of the wine.

Many thanks to Christine and to Guillaume for sharing their passion for their profession, and to all our participants for their enthusiasm and good cheer.

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The day started in the Boissonneuse vineyard, which was the first plot to be converted to organic and biodynamic farming. Here the head of one the vine teams, Arnaud, explained the differences between cultivating the vines traditionally, organically and biodynamically, and brought us up to speed on the work that has already been done in the vineyard since the harvest last year

The vines are currently a couple of weeks ahead or a normal year, and the first leaves have already appeared.  This means that the work of de-budding can begin.  Arnaud showed us how to remove the double buds and the unwanted shoots.  De-budding is an important step in determining the quality of the harvest to come by concentrating the energy of the plant in the fruit-bearing branches.

Before heading back to the winery, we took a few minutes to find our adopted vines, giving us the opportunity to take a few photos with them, and to fuss over them a little!

Domaine Brocard makes an impressive range of Chablis wines, and we tasted several Petit Chablis, Chablis, Chablis Premier Cru and Grand Cru wines before sitting down to lunch.

In the afternoon, we took some fresh air and went to visit a different vine plot before visiting the vinification hall that holds the large oak vats.  Here, Pierre introduced us to the vinification and ageing side of wine-making.
Many thanks to Pierre and Arnaud from Domaine Brocard, and to all of our participants for a thoroughly enjoyable day.

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To start talking about the fermentation and vinification stages, there is no better place than the chai, and it was here that Christine Nadalié, the winemaker at Château Beau Rivage, explained all about the alcoholic and malo-lactic fermentation.

Christine comes from a family of coopers and as she says, she fell into a barrel at a very young age! The barrel room at the winery is very impressive, and Christine talks with as much passion about her barrels as she does her wines. She explained the importance of the source of the oak used for the barrels and the different toasts that are used to influence the structure of the wine. With the stirring of the lees, topping up the angel's share, and racking the barrels, there's more than enough to keep the maitre de chai busy!

We then took a few minutes to venture into the vineyard and enjoy the sunshine. With a week to go before Easter, instead of hunting for the Easter eggs, we searched for the adopted vines!

The Vinification Experience Day is the course where we taste the most wine. To better prepare us for the wine tastings, we organised a workshop to identify the aromas found in wine. When tasting wines, finding the words to describe our impressions is often the most difficult thing.

The first tasting was blind, and we had to find the difference between two wines. They were both however identical wines, the only difference being the type of barrel that they had been aged in. The comparison showed us the aromatic and difference in taste of a wine aged in French oak and a wine aged in American oak.

At lunchtime, we dined in the 1902 restaurant, located at the family cooperage. During the meal we tasted wines from the range made by Christine.

Blending wines is a true art form, and we set aside the afternoon to better understand it. First of all, we tasted wines from four different grape varietals separately - merlot, cabernet sauvignon, malbec and petit verdot to appreciate the characteristics of each.

We then made several blends to see how the wine changes when different combinations of grape varietals are used. Even a small change in percentage can have a big impact on the final wine. We gradually honed our blends to try and find the best wine.

Many thanks to Christine and Guillaume from Château Beau Rivage for sharing their passion for their profession with us, and to all of the participants for their enthusiasm. We now just have to wait patiently as we give the wine the time to age sufficiently before knowing the blend that Christine will choose for our cuvée!

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We met up with Arnaud from the vineyard management team in the Boissonneuse vineyard, which was the first plot of vines to be converted to organic and biodynamic farming. Arnaud talked about the work that was conducted during the winter, and showed us how the vines are pruned and then attached horizontally to the training wire.

Pruning has finished throughout the estate, but Arnaud had left us a few small rows to prune. After a few demonstrations, it was our turn to have a go. Secateurs in hand, we quickly learnt that pruning is not as simple as you would have thought. Each vine requires thinking about and it seems that there are as many exceptions as there are vines!

Arnaud also showed us how to "pluck" the remaining branch to better concentrate the vines energy in the fruit-bearing branches.

The special vineyard tractors were also out working in the same plot, and so we were also able to see how they are used to turn the soil in between the vine stocks and the rows.

The Boissonneuse vineyard is also the plot where the adopted vines of Gourmet Odyssey's clients are located, and so we took a few minutes to find our micro-plot of vines!

Our taste buds were fully awake after all the morning's fresh air, and so back at the winery, we began to taste different wines from the range of Chablis wines that are produced on the estate. We continued the tasting during the meal, which was prepared by a local Chablis caterer.

The afternoon continued with a visit of the winery building for an introduction of the work carried out in the cellar, something that we will explore in more detail during the Vinification Experience Days.

Many thanks to Pierre and Arnaud for having shared their passion for the professions with us, and to all of the participants for their enthusiasm!

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We were welcomed to the winery by its owner winemaker, Jean-François Chapelle, who recounted the history of the vineyard and surrounding area. It was also the opportunity to remind ourselves of some of the Burgundy geography basics!

In the fermentation hall and cellar, Yannick, the Technical Director, explained how the grape juice is transformed into wine after the harvest and then aged until it is ready for bottling. He told us how the vinification process differs between red and white wines, and how the wine is aged in the oak barrels. We tasted the same 2013 wine, but aged in different types of barrel, one new, the other a few years old, to better understand the role each has on the taste and structure of wine.

During this time another group, under the direction of Jean-François, participated in a workshop to help develop the senses of taste and smell when tasting Burgundy wines.

We then started the wine tasting in earnest with a couple of white wines from the estate, accompanied with some gougères. We continued the tasting during the meal with some of the red wines.

After the meal, we made the most of the sunshine, and headed into the Clos des Cornières vineyard to visit our adopted vines and take a few photos.

The Clos des Cornières contains three different ages of vines, and their grapes are picked and vinified separately before being blended to produce the wine that is chosen for the clients of Gourmet Odyssey. Back at the winery, we tasted the three different wines separately, as the 2013 vintage is still in the process of ageing, and has not yet been blended together.

We now have a several more months left to patiently wait and let the wine slowly age before being bottled. Another fascinating day spent at the winery - many thanks to all the team at Domaine Chapelle!

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As soon as the grapes are harvested, they start the vinification process to extract the different compounds from the grapes and to optimise the quality of the wine produced. Once the grapes are brought to the chai from the vineyard, the grape must starts to ferment to transform the sugar into alcohol with the help of yeast. The juice then becomes wine. Often a second fermentation then takes place to turn the malic acid into lactic acid, making the wine rounder and softer. The wine then enters the ageing period in vats or oak barrels.

The general principle seems fairly straightforward, but there are different processes according to grape varietal, colour and wine producing regions. And at each step, the winemaker takes decisions that are crucial in influencing the aroma and taste of the wine. These choices are personal and so there are as many different ways of vinifying and ageing wine as there are winemakers!

Without going into specific vinification details for rosé, sparkling or sweet wines, there are two principal details for vinifying white and red wines.

First the white wines. Once the grapes have been picked and sorted, and have arrived in the chai, they are put into a wine press to extract the juice from the grapes. The time that the pulp and grape skins are in contact with each other is very short for white wine, explaining why the wine is lightly coloured. Next the juice is clarified by removing the solid particles present in the must, such as skin, pip or stalk particles. This is done by letting the particles settle or by centrifuge. The juice then ferments to become wine and enters the ageing phase which can be just a few weeks or a few years for wines that are made for keeping. Ageing can be in barrels or vats.

For the red wines, the process is slightly different. Once the grapes have been picked and sorted, they are put into a vat, either whole or having been separated from the stems. Sometimes the grapes are lightly crushed to set free some of the must. In the vat the grapes are left to macerate so that the juice can extract the tannins and colour from the skin and pips.

The alcoholic fermentation starts at the same time and generally lasts between one and three weeks. Once it has finished we draw off the liquid. The remaining solid matter is known as marc and is then pressed to extract the wine that has been soaked into it. This is known as press wine, and the winemaker can choose whether or not to blend it with the rest of the wine. The wine is then left to finish the fermentation, alcoholic and malo-lactic, before being aged in barrels or vats.

At each step of the way, the winemaker tastes the grapes and wines, analyses them, and then makes a multitude of decisions such as how strong to press, whether to de-stem the bunches, how long to let the wine macerate, how long to age the wine, whether to use vats or barrels... As many important choices as there are different wines!

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Château Beau Rivage

Salons des Vignerons Indépendants de Paris
Espace Champerret - Paris
28, 29 & 30 March : 10:00 - 20 :00
31 March : 10 :00 - 18:00
More information here.

Domaine Jean-Marc Brocard

Salon des Vins de Mâcon
Salle « Le Spot » - Parc des Expositions de Mâcon
25 April : 14:00 - 21:00
26 April : 10:00 - 21:00
27 April : 10:00 - 19:00
Tarif : 5 euros (1 wine tasting glass included). Tickets on sale at the entrance.

More information here.

Domaine Stentz-Buecher

DiVINes & Sens 2014
7 April : 16:00 - 22:00
Hôtel Régent Petite France, 5 Rue des Moulins - Strasbourg

This unusual and fun approach enables the visitors to discover Alsace wines and other gourmet delicacies via thematic workshops which present a range of wines and gastronomic products produced by women.

Tarif: 10 euros, glass included and part of the entrance fee is given to charity.
Information and registration.

Rendez-vous Portes Ouvertes : Les Guinguettes
Open day and wine tasting at the winery.
30, 31 May & 1 June 2014

More information here.

Domaine Chapelle

The 25th edition of the Journées Gourmandes du Grand Morvan
Hall des Expositions - Saulieu
Thursday 29 & Saturday 31 May : 10:00 - 23 :00
Friday 30 May : 10:00 - 20 :00
Sunday 1 June : 10:00 - 19:00
Tarif : 2 euros. Tickets on sale at the entrance.

More information here.

Foire gastronomique de Mailly-Champagne
In the village streets of Mailly-Champagne
Saturday 7 & Monday 9 June : 10:00 - 19:00
Sunday 8 June : 10:00 - 20:00
Tarif : 5 euros. Tickets on sale at the entrance.

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