Adopt a Vine and Make Your Own Wine

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Tagged articles : Adopt-a-vine

Tasting the 2010 and 2011 wines during the Vinfication Experience Day


The life of a winemaker can be tough at times, especially in winter when the weather is as freezing as it is at the moment!  And sometimes, even for the Gourmet Odyssey clients, you need to brave the elements, as we did last weekend in Bordeaux in sub zero temperatures and with 8cm of snow covering the vineyard on Sunday!  Fortunately, during the Vinification Experience Days, we spend most of the time inside, so we made ourselves at home around the roaring fire in the kitchen!

Snow covered Bordeaux vineyard

Wrapped up from head to toe, we started the day in the vineyard so that everyone could (re)visit their adopted vines.

At this time of the year, the principal activity in the vineyard is pruning.  Christine and David from Château Beau Rivage explained why pruning is so important and showed us how to do so.  When you see the number of vines to prune, and realise that each is pruned manually, you have a much better understanding of the huge and manually intensive task that it is for the winery.

Christine explains pruning the vines in Bordeaux during the Wine Experience day in Bordeaux
 

Next stop, the fermentation hall and barrel room where the wine is fermented and aged, to learn more about the vinification and wine making stages.

Learning about the fermentation process in the barrel room
 

We then headed to the warmth of the kitchen to delve into the heart of the day's topic with a wine tasting lesson and some exercises to put our sense of smell to work.  We passed around some small jars containing the main aromas to be found in red Bordeaux wines, and we had to identify which aroma each flask contained.  It's not as easy as it at first appears!

Training the nose to identify the aromas forund in wine
 

Our tasting senses awakened, it was then time to start the wine tasting.  First up, three different wines were chosen to better understand the effect that wood has on the wine.  Each wine was 100% merlot from 2010, but each had been aged separately in a different type of barrel.  The first had matured in an old French oak barrel, the second in new French oak, and the third in new American oak.  The result, three wines with completely different aromas, structure and taste.  The marked difference between the three is really quite astonishing!

We then continued the wine tasting during the meal with some of the winery's finished wines to compare different vintages and blends.
In the afternoon, we concentrated on the different grape varietals grown in the vineyard to better understand what characteristics each brings to a blended wine.  Chrsitine had prepared samples of Malbec, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot from the 2011 harvest.  We tasted each one by one, and discussed their differences.

 

Wine tasting by grape varietal, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Petit Verdot
In small groups, we then mixed our own blends to learn how the different grape varietals and their percentages change the wine.
Blending our own wine
 

We finished the day by tasting the blend that Château Beau Rivage had presented at the Millésime Bio organic wine fair the week before.

It's impossible to learn everything in a day, and as Christine remarked, she studied oenology for 4 years, but we each left with a better appreciation of the choices that the winemaker faces to create very different wines depending on the grape varietals, percentages and barrels used.

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Original St Valentine’s Gift for a Wine Lover. Adopt a row of vines!


Find out what it's really like to be a winemaker with the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience gift and discover the secrets that go into making a great wine. It's the St Valentine's gift for 2012 that your loved one won't forget!

Original St Valentine's Gift for a Wine Lover. Adopt-a-vine in an organic French vineyard

So, what's included? Your partner will become the adopted owner of a mini plot of vines in one of our organic vineyards in France, and will follow all of the key stages in making the wine. You can also include one or more of the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience Days at the vineyard so that you can roll up your sleeves and get involved yourself in helping the winemaker.

The Wine Experience Days, each valid for two people, are the ideal excuse to get away and share a weekend together in one of France's most beautiful wine regions. Alongside the winemaker, you'll learn how to cultivate the vines, harvest the grapes and blend the wines in the cellar. A wine tasting session of the estate' wine are of course included, as well as the chance to savour other regional delicacies during the winemaker's meal.

At the end of the Wine Experience, your loved one will receive their own personalised bottles of wines made with the grapes from their adopted vines.

So if you're looking for an original St Valentine's gift to surprise the wine lover in your life, why not adopt a vine! 

Follow this link for more information on the Gourmet Odyssey St Valentine's Wine Experience gift.

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Original Christmas Gift Idea for a Wine Lover


With just a few weeks to go, the pressure is mounting to find that original Christmas present idea?

Original Christmas Wine Gift Idea. Adopt-a-vine in France and participate in an authentic Wine Experience

Don't worry - Gourmet Odyssey might have just the Christmas gift for a wine enthusiast that you've been looking for.  Not only is it an original gift experience, but it's also organic!

Adopt some vines and give an unusual wine experience gift.  Your recipient will become the adoptive owner of their plot of organic vines in France, and can also get involved in helping to make their wine at the vineyard, guided by one of our passionate winemakers during one of the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience days.

During these hands-on wine courses, each valid for two people, you will discover what it takes to be a winemaker, and what secrets lie behind making a bottle of great wine.  It?s also a great excuse to visit some of France's most famous wine growing regions.

Throughout the Wine Experience, you are kept updated of the key steps in nurturing the vines, the harvest, and the work in the cellar via newsletters.

And at the end of the experience, you get to choose the name of your vintage and receive a bottle of personalised wine for each adopted vine!

So how's that for a Christmas gift that breaks the mould?

Follow this link for more information about the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience.

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Harvest Experience Day in Bordeaux


Last weekend we completed our tour for 2011 of the Harvest Experience Days for each of our partner vineyards at Château Beau Rivage in Macau-en-Médoc.  A turquoise blue sky and warm welcome were waiting for us.

The Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience clients gathered around a cup of coffee at the start of the morning.  For some, it was the second time they had visited the estate, having already participated in the Wine Discovery Experience Day, for others it was their very first time.  We therefore started the proceedings with an introduction by Christine Nadalié, the owner and winemaker at Château Beau Rivage.

Harvest wine course to pick the grapes in the vineyard

Then out into the vineyard we headed! We walked to the vineyard plot where the rows of adopt-a-vines are located.  A small sign, personalised with the name of each client, indicated the position of their vines.  There was time to take a few pictures next to the vines which had produced the precious grapes for the 2011 vintage, before getting down to some real work!

Having received our instructions from Christine, we spread out amongst the vine rows, secateurs in hand to start the harvest.  It was the last few days of this year's harvest at the domaine, and some of the grapes were showing signs of botrytis which had settled during the wet days at the start of September, so we had to do some sorting in-situ.  The healthy grapes were very ripe and oh so sweet - a real treat for our taste buds!

Pickeing the bunches of grapes during the harvest in Bordeaux

We tried two different harvesting methods on the Saturday and Sunday.  On Saturday we used a team of porters with baskets strapped to their backs.  Each time the harvesters had filled their buckets, they cried out "Porter" and emptied the grapes into the porter's basket.

Transferring the bunches of grapes to the porter

The porters then carried the grapes to the trailer, and emptied them over their heads.  With the weight of the fully laden basket and whilst balancing on a ladder, they had to keep their equilibrium!

Harvest Wine Experience Gift. Emptying the picked grapes.

On Sunday we harvested using plastic crates instead of buckets, which is gentler on the grapes.  Instead of carrying baskets on their backs, the porters wore a frame that the crates could be loaded onto to take to the van and trailer waiting nearby.  Christine wanted to test this method because the grapes are less crushed by the weight of the other bunches.

A porter collecting crates of harvested grapes

Following the grapes on their journey, we arrived at the sorting table.  Once the stems had been separated from the grapes, the berries move along the conveyor belt, giving us a final opportunity to remove any unripe or bad grapes before they enter the fermentation tank.

Sorting the grapes on the sorting table

All that activity added up to good morning's work, so the chilled rosé was most welcome!

Wine Tasting. A chilled rosé in the shade of the Château

During the harvesters meal, we tasted some of the estate's other wines, starting with the "Raphaël" Bordeaux Supérieur red wine.  We then tasted the "Silvio" and the "Clementine" before the "Château Beau Rivage" 2007, which is the wine chosen for the Gourmet Odyssey clients.  We finished the wine tasting with "Le Phare", a blend of Merlot, Petit Verdot and Malbec which has been aged in 100% new oak barrels for two years, and Christine's "Clos la Bohème" Haut-Médoc red wine.

The Harvesters Meal

In the afternoon, we headed to the fermentation hall and the barrel room to complete the journey of our grapes!  Christine explained how the sugar from the fruit will be transformed into alcohol during the fermentation process.

Christine explains the fermentation process

With the help of a mustimètre, Christine measured the density of the juice from the grapes that we had just harvested.  This measure allows us to know the level of sugar in the liquid and gives a good indication of the potential alcoholic volume of the resulting wine - in this case 14.5%.

Measuring the sugar level of the grape juice

In the barrel room we saw where the 2011 wines will be aged, and where some of the 2009s and the 2010s are still resting.  With her cooper's expertise, Christine taught us about the role of oak in the making of her wines.

 

Visit of the cellar to see where the wine ages in oka barrels

To end the day, one last tasting of the fruit of our labour, the grape juice that we had harvested over the weekend.  The verdict, a very sweet juice!  The mustimètre hadn't been lying!

Tasting the Must, freshly harvested grape juice

All that remains is to patiently await the ageing and blending of our wine...

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Harvest Experience Day in the Loire Valley


We spent last weekend at Château de la Bonnelière in Chinon.  Surrounded by the beautiful Loire Valley countryside and under a blue sky, we met up with some of the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience clients for the first Harvest Experience Day at the winery.

The aim of this wine course is to discover what it's like to be a winemaker in a very practical and fun way. It's a sharing of knowledge between the winemaker and the clients, who learn in-situ the different facets of the profession by rolling up their sleeves and actively participating in the work themselves!

Harvest Experience Gift in the Loire Valley, France

Following the introduction from Marc Plouzeau, the owner and winemaker at Château de la Bonnelière, we started the day with another introduction, that of the adopted vines!  Included in each client's Wine Experience are a number of adopt-a-vines.  At the beginning of each row of vines, a small personalised sign indicates the owner of the adopted vines, providing a photo opportunity to immortalise the moment in front of the vines, laden with ripe grapes!

Adopt-a-vine gift owner infront of her adopted vines

But we weren't there just to take photos!  Marc had brought us a van full of crates, which we then distributed among the rows.

Marc showed us how to harvest; which grapes to cut and which to leave behind. At Château de la Bonnelière, the sorting of the grapes is done in the vineyard at the time of harvesting, and not on the sorting table, as is the custom in some wineries. It's therefore very important to only harvest the ripe grapes to ensure the quality of the wine to follow!

Secateurs and baskets in hand, we spread out among the vines in teams of two to start the harvest!

Picking the grapes during the Harvest Experience Day in the French vineyard in Chinon, the Loire Valley

The vines at Château de la Bonnelière are bursting with grapes this year and the fruit is looking very healthy despite the wet end to the summer that the region suffered. The smile on Marc's face showed that he was happy with the condition of the grapes. It's the end of another cycle in the vineyard, but many hours, much energy and devotion have been spent in the vineyard since the last harvest to get to this point. The vine is a creeper plant, and so can grow all by itself, but to ensure that the grapes contain enough sugar to make a quality wine, it demands lots of work, especially when they are cultivated organically.

Ripe grapes ready for picking

The baskets filled up quickly! Once full, we transferred the grapes into the crates before moving onto the next vines in the row.

Emptying the harvested grapes into the crates

At the end of the morning, all of the crates had been filled! A tractor was waiting for us at the edge of the vineyard, and we loaded our precious harvest onto the trailer. We were surprised to learn from Marc that we our efforts represented roughly 1000 bottles! Not bad at all, especially as it was the first harvest for each of the clients!

Taking the harvested grapes by tractor to the Fermentation Hall

Following our grapes, we arrived at the chai to put our harvest into the fermentation tanks ourselves!

Again in teams of two we emptied the crates into the de-stemming machine, which separates the grapes from the stalks. 

Emptying the grapes into the de-stemming machine

The grapes fall into a trolley underneath the machine and the stems fall the other side into a large bucket. The stems will be used as compost and spread among the vines to return some of the nutrients to the soil.

With the help of a forklift truck, the whole grape berries are then put into the top of the vats, where the fermentation will start to turn the sugar into alcohol.

Putting the grapes into the fermentation tank using a forklift truck

All of this work had made us thirsty, so back to the winery to taste some of the estate's wines around a few old wooden wine barrels.  Accompanied by some locally-made rillettes, we tasted the Touraine Sauvignon 2010 white wine, followed by a Chinon rosé 2010.

Wine tasting session of the estate's Chinon and Touraine red, whit and rosé wines

We then sat down in the shade to savour the delicious meal, prepared by Madame Plouzeau, Marc's mother. The tomato salad will be remembered for a very long time to come ! The tomatoes were picked just a few hundred metres away, and were truly bursting with flavor!  She had also prepared a Blanquette de Veau, a selection of local Loire cheeses and an apple and rhubarb crumble. And of course we had some wine to accompany these delicacies; a Chinon "Rive Gauche" 2009, a Chinon "Château de la Bonnelière" 2009, and the 2009 and 2008 vintages of the Chinon "Chapelle".

The Harvesters meal

After the meal, there was still some work to be done, so we headed back to the chai.  In the fermentation tanks, the grape skins rise to the top to form a cap above the liquid. It's the skin however that gives the colour and much of the wine's structure through the tanins that it contains. It's therefore vital to mix the liquid and the skins. There are various ways to do this. You can push the skin down into the liquid using the "pigeage" technique, or you can do the opposite by taking the liquid from the bottom of the vat and putting it back in the top so that the juice extracts the colour and tannins from the skin as it passes through the cap. This is method is called "remontage".

During the first stages of fermentation, Marc prefers remontage. To do so, we put a big bucket in front of the vat, and opened a tap to let the juice flow into it. We then put in place the tubes and pump to carry the liquid into the top of the vat.

Remontage to extract the full potential for the wine

We couldn't leave without tasting the fruit of our labour, so we ended the day by tasting a cabernet franc that had been harvested a few days before and so the fermentation had already started. This lightly fermented grape juice is called "Bernache" in the region. We then compared it to a cabernet franc rosé where the fermentation was already more advanced.

Tasting the Bernache, grape juice that is in the early stages of fermentation

Sincere thanks to all those who came and particularly to Marc for having showed us behind the scenes during the busy harvest period.  We can't wait until the next Wine Experience Day!

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Harvest Experience Day in the Languedoc


We have just spent our first Wine Experience day at Domaine Allegria, and we are thrilled with our choice of winery and the winemakers, Ghislain and Delphine d'Aboville.  A fantastic setting and a passionate couple who have an unconventional and captivating story on how they ended up settling under the Languedoc sun of southern France.

We met up with some of the clients of the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience for the harvest, and what fine grapes were waiting for us!

Harvest Experience Day at Allegria, Pezenas, Languedoc-Roussillon, south of France

In front of the brand new winery building, Ghislain introduced us the estate and briefly described his professional journey, from his beginnings in the Champagne region, his studies of wine in Montpellier, the experiences he gained whilst working in wineries in France, Argentina and Italy, up until his quest to find the perfect land, capable of providing the quality of grapes to make the wines that he had so long dreamed of making.

In the vineyard at domaine Allegria

Rounding the winery building, we headed up into the vines, where Ghislain pointed out the difference in grape varieties and terroir.  We crossed to the far side of the vineyard to reach the plot where the adopted vines of Gourmet Odyssey's clients are located.  A personalised sign for each client was awaiting them to identify their row of vines!

Harvest of the grapes among the vines

But, as the name of the Harvest Experience day suggests, we were there to harvest!  Armed with a pair of secateurs each and a crate, we dispersed amongst the vine rows in teams of two to get to work harvesting.  A few grapes found their way into our mouths rather than the crates, giving the first hint of the vintage to come!

Van filled with crates

The van was quickly filled with the bulging crates, so Ghislain took the first part of the harvest back to the winery and brought us back some new empty crates.  We obviously had a crack team of harvesters with us!

Wine tasting at Allegria, Pezenas, Languedoc-Roussillon, southern France

Back at the winery, the aperitif was most welcome!  We started the wine tasting of Allegria's nectar with the "Petits Bonheurs" 2010 rosé, followed by the "Tribu d'A" 2008 white. 

Tasting the red and white wines, Coteaux du Languedoc Pezenas

We continued the tasting over lunch with some red wines: the "Tribu d'A" 2008 red, a blend of 80% syrah and 20% mourvèdre and the wine chosen for the Gourmet Odyssey vintages, the "Cousu Main" 2008, served in magnums, finishing with the "Carignan Gourmand" 2008.

Unloading the crates full of the harvested grapes

After the meal, it was time to get back to work! The first task was to empty the remainder of the harvested grapes from the van.

Before starting to put the grapes into the fermentation tanks, we had to rinse the material, and then we each took our places in a different work post.

Emptying the grapes into the egrappeur

The first team took the full crates and emptied them into the "égrappeur", a machine that separates the berries from the stalks.

Harvested Grapes falling into the fermentation vat

The grapes fall into a basin, from where they are pushed into the vat with the help of an electric pump.  Another team, positioned above the tanks controlled the grapes as they arrived.  Each grape variety and plot of vines is vinified separately in different vats.

Speading the grape stems amongst row of vines to compost and return nutrients to the soil

The stalks are collected in crates underneath the de-stemming machine and are then taken away and spread among the vines to decompose and return nutrients to the soil.  The vines at Allegria are cultivated organically, so no synthetic fertilizers are allowed.

It's very impressive to have the opportunity to be able to go behind the scenes to see the grapes being put to rest in the vats, and we were surprised with the speed with which we got through all of the bunches of grapes that had took us so long to harvest in the morning!

Cleaning the equipment at the end of the Harvest Experience Day

At the end of the day, all that remained was to clean the crates, secateurs and the rest of the material used so that all was ready the following day.

A very instructive and fun day to gain a small insight into the life of a winemaker.  Many thanks to all who came, and to Ghislain and Delphine for their warm welcome.  We left Pézenas with the feeling that the Allegria odyssey is only just beginning!

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Home Straight to the Harvest


We had to be flexible last Saturday with the Wine Discovery Experience Day at Domaine Chapelle to avoid a few showers, but that didn't stop us having a good time all the same!

Understanding the vineyards and terroir of Burgundy

We started off with a little stroll through the vines.  Jean-François Chapelle explained what makes the Burgundy terroir so special, and showed us the geological differences between the vineyards that make up Santenay village, Santenay Premier Cru and the plots used for the Burgundy Pinot Noir.

We climbed up to one of Domaine Chapelle's Premier Cru vineyards, Beaurepaire.  Some of the old vines in this vineyard have recently been dug up, so Jean-François explained how his team removed the vines and roots, and how the plot will be sowed with mustard to regenerate the soil before the new vines are planted.

Visit of the Fermentation Hall

The first rain shower arrived a little earlier than expected, so we scurried back to the shelter of the winery to continue our discussions on the work carried out in the vineyard, and we also visited the fermentation hall where the grapes are received at harvest time and put into the fermentation tanks.

Wine Tasting of Burgundy Wines at the winery

Next up was a wine tasting of some of the white Burgundy wines from Domaine Chapelle, a Santenay "Saint Jean" 2009 and a Chassgane Montrachet Premier Cru "Les Morgeots" 2009.  The wine tasting continued over our lunch of Burgundy specialties.  First, a Santenay "Clos des Cornières" 2006, the wine chosen for the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience, then an Aloxe Corton 2007, with a Santenay Premier Cru "Beaurepaire" 2002 to finish.

Rent a vine in a Burgundy vineyard

After the meal, we had a new bright patch, so we headed back amongst the vines, this time to the Clos des Cornières vineyard so that everyone could get acquainted with their adopted vines!

Visit of the wine cellar

Back at the winery, we descended through the low door to the vaulted cellar which is a real labyrinth.  Here we saw where the ageing takes place in the oak barrels, and where hundreds of thousands of bottles of wine are stored!

The Wine Labeling Room

The Wine Experience Day finished with a visit to the labeling room, where one day next year the bottles of the 2011 vintage will be dressed with the personalised wine labels of the clients of the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience.  But there's still lots of work to be done before then - you have to be patient in the world of wine!

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Among friends in the Chablis Vineyards


We've just spent two glorious sunny days among the Chablis vines with some of the clients of the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience.  With Céline, Pierre and Yvonnick from Domaine Jean-Marc Brocard at our sides, we spent the day behind the scenes to get an insight into what it's like to be a winemaker!

Explaining the terroir around Chablis

Link to the video 

To get a better understanding of the terroir around us, we stepped out onto the terrace which overlooks the vines which encircle the winery.  It's an impressive view and the perfect spot to appreciate the difference in vineyard plots that make Petit Chablis, Chablis, Chablis Premier Cru and Chablis Grand Cru wines.

Epamprage

In the vineyard, Yvonnick explained to us all of the key stages in cultivating the vines, from pruning right up until the harvest.  As is the custom with our Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience Days, the winemakers had left us some work to do!  To concentrate the energy of the vines in the fruit bearing branches and the grapes, we needed to do some "épamprage", which involves removing unwanted shoots from the vines.  These are the shoots that won't bear any fruit this year, and won't be needed when it comes to pruning to generate next year's harvest.  The other advantage of épamprage is to improve the flow of air around the grapes to help defend the vines from mildew.

Getting stuck in

After receiving our instructions from Yvonnick, we spread out among the rows of vines to get stuck in.  But we soon found out that épamprage is not quite as easy as it seems!

Adopt-a-vine

Each Wine Experience client is the adopted owner of some vines in the vineyard.  Their vines are identifiable by a name board placed in front of them.  Once the hunt for the vines was declared open, we set off to find them and to check that everything was in order!

Organic and biodynamic wine making

The Boissonneuse vineyard, where the adopted vines are located, was the first plot to be converted to organic and biodynamic cultivation.  Yvonnick explained the difference between these two approaches, and showed us some of the plants, found at the end of the vine rows, that are used in making the biodynamic infusions and concoctions that attract unwanted insects away from the vines, or are used to strengthen the vines.

Wine Tasting of the Chablis Wines at the Vineyard

After all our efforts and all the talk about wine, the time finally came to taste some of the wines from Domaine Jean-Marc Brocard.  To get a good appreciation of the range of wines, we started the wine tasting with a Petit Chablis Sainte Claire 2010, followed by a Chablis Sainte Claire 2010, before tasting the Boissonneuse 2009, the wine chosen by Gourmet Odyssey.  We then moved on to several Chablis Premier Crus and finished with a Chablis Grand Cru Les Preuses 2009.

Exposed cut of the Kimmeridgien soil

Once we had enjoyed a lunch from the highly acclaimed Chablis charcutier, Marc Colin, we headed down into the cool or the cellar.  Here, the Brocard family has left one of the walls exposed so that we can see the layers of limestone and marl which are the source of the distinctive aromas and taste of Chablis wines.

Visit of the fermentation hall

The day finished with a visit to the fermentation hall to see the tanks and oak vats that are used to ferment and age the wines.  After a final tasting, straight from the vats, we said our goodbyes, everyone hopefully leaving with a better understanding of the fascinating profession of a winemaker!

Link to the video 

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Is your Dad a Wine Connoisseur? Adopt a Vine for an original Father’s Day Gift!


Father's Day is fast approaching - it's the time to find that unique gift.

 

Original father's day wine gift for a wine connoisseur

The Romans used to pay tribute each year during February to dead fathers, but Father's Day as we celebrate it today was born in the United States at the beginning of the last century. Mother's Day was already well established when a young girl who had lost her mother and was being raised by her father wished to honour him, and so suggested that we also celebrate Father's Day. The idea caught on, resulting in Father's Day becoming an institution in many countries!

A delightful day for all fathers but a real dilemma for children; what to give for an innovative and original father's day present Gourmet Odyssey has an original father's day gift idea for you that is a unique adventure for any wine connoisseur!

More than a wine course or a good bottle of wine, your father will receive a personalised gift box introducing him to the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience.  During a whole vintage he will be the adopted owner of vines in a renowned French vineyard and will participate in the making of his own personalised bottles of wine!

So look no further for the perfect present: offer him an unusual Father's Day wine gift that he'll remember for years!

 

Learn more about our Father's Day wine gifts.

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De-budding in Burgundy


Under the blue skies of Burgundy, we spent last weekend at Domaine Chapelle with some of the Wine Discovery Experience Day clients.  The aim of the day is to learn more about making wine in a very practical way and to get behind the scenes to find out what it's really like to be a winemaker.

Watch the video (french langauge)

 

Burgundy vineyards

After the initial introductions, we headed straight out into the Clos des Cornières vineyard, where the adopted vines of the clients are located.  With the panoramic views of the surrounding vineyards, Jean Françcois Chapelle began by explaining the difference in terroir between the vine plots used for Premier Cru, Santenay village, Burgundy red, and Santenay village white wines.  Something which is much easier to understand with the landscape in front of you than by looking at a map!

Cultivating the vines organically
 

We learnt about all of the key stages in cultivating the vines from pruning, treating the vines organically, right through to when the grapes will eventually be fully ripened come harvest time.  Much like the other wine producing regions of France, Burgundy has had a very warm and sunny April, which means that the vines are currently some 3 weeks in advance of a normal year.  It's still too early to predict exactly when the harvest will be, but it will almost surely be sooner than usual.

The difference betwwen Chardonnay and Pinot Noir Vine Leaves
 

The adjacent vineyard is planted with Chardonnay vines, so we took a look at the difference in the vines, the different pruning methods used and compared the foliage of the pinot noir and Chardonnay vines. 

De-budding

 

Back in the Clos des Cornières vineyard, time to get down to some work!  The essence of a Gorumet Odyssey Wine Experience Day is to learn about wine making by touching, seeing, doing, tasting and smelling.  Jean François had left a few rows of vines to be de-budded.  He explained the importance of removing some of the vine shoots to concentrate growth in the future fruit-bearing shoots, which will help improve the quality of the grapes, and showed us how to select which shoots to break off.  Easy! We each settled in front of some vines, looked at each shoot, remembered what Jean François had told us, and then froze as the realisation of the responsibility that had been placed upon us hit home. No-one wants to choose the wrong shoot to detach!  Luckily Jean François and Yvette Chapelle were at hand to guide us, and soon the pace of activity increased!

Rent-a-vine sign in the Burgundy vineyard

 

Signs had been placed in the vineyard to mark where the adopted vines of each client are located. Time was set aside to search out each client's mini plot of vines.  The cameras came out, various poses were adopted, some set about weeding around their vines, and others even started murmuring sweet nothings to encourage their fertility!

Wine tasting in the courtyard Domaine Chapelle, Santenay, Burgundy
 

After the effort, time to head back to the winery for a well earned aperitif!  In the shade of the courtyard, we began the wine tasting, accompanied by some Gougères, a delicious cheese pastry specialty from Burgundy.  We started with Domaine Chapelle's Santenay "St Jean" 2009 white wine, a crisp and mineral chardonnay from the upper slopes above the domaine that we had seen from our time in the vineyard.  Next we tasted the Chassagne Montrachet  "Morgeot" Premier Cru 2008 white wine, a more fruity and complex wine.

Lunch, including boeuf bourguignon and local cheeses, was served in the reception hall, whilst the wine tasting continued with the red wines. First a comparison of the Santenay Village "Clos des Cornières" 2009 and 2006 (the wine selected for the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience), followed by the domaine's Aloxe Corton 2007, and finally the Santenay "Beaurepaire" Premier Cru 2002. 

Visit of the fermentation hall

The cool of the cuverie and cellars awaited us in the afternoon.  First an introduction to how the grapes are received at harvest time, sorted, and ferment in the tanks.

Visit of the cellars
 

Ducking our heads, we descended into the vast cellars where the 2010 wines are currently ageing, and some 130,000 bottles are stocked.  Jean François explained the ageing process, and the choice of oak barrels used.

The wine labelling station
 

The visit ended with an explanation of the bottling and labeling stations, the final stage in preparing the wine before it is packaged up and dispatched to be enjoyed far and beyond the small village of Santenay!

A very warm thanks to Jean François and Yvette for sharing their passion with us, and for giving us an insight into the many and varied facets that make up the life of a winemaker.

Watch the video (french langauge)

 

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Successful Harvest Experience Day in Bordeaux!


Last weekend we were at Château Beau Rivage, in the Bordeaux region, to get involved in the harvest with some of the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience clients.  We had a great time, mixing work in the vineyard, getting to know the winemakers and sharing their knowledge, and of course tasting some great wines!

 

Harvest Experience Day at Château Beau Rivage in Bordeaux

 

After a brief introduction to the winery, Christine (the owner and winemaker) and her team, we headed off to the vineyard, each carrying a basket and pair of secateurs.  Christophe explained the differences between the five grape varieties grown in the vineyard, the work involved in bringing the grapes to maturity, and what to look out for to know when the grapes have reached the ideal moment for harvesting.

Adopt-a-vine sign
 

Before starting to harvest, we made our way to the part of the vineyard where the Gourmet Odyssey vines are located, so that each client could find their adopted vines.  To help identify the vines, Château Beau Rivage had engraved wooden signs, specially for the clients of the Harvest Experience Day, at the barrel-making firm that belongs to Christine's family.

Harvester
 

Christine threw out a challenge to us to fill a trailer! In pairs, each on opposite sides of a row, we began to harvest the Merlot plot that was at the peak of its maturity.  A few songs and the regular cry of "Porter" added to the snip snip of the secateurs and the rustle of leaves.  Once the baskets were filled, the harvester called for the porter, and empties the picked grapes into the basket that the porter carries on his back.  Having collected the bunches from the different teams of harvesters, the porter then empties his basket into the trailer, which starts to fill little by little.

 

Transferring the grapes to the trailer

The work of the harvester and porter is very physical, especially if done day after day for a couple of weeks.  Luckily, our mission was finished in a little over two hours, and a wine tasting session and harvester's meal awaited us back at the château!

Barbecue over dried vines
 

The first wine we tasted was the Château Beau Rivage Clairet 2009, a fresh Bordeaux style rosé, served with local charcuterie.  Accompanying the duck and gizzards salad, we tasted the Château Beau Rivage 2005 and 2003 vintages, and the Clementine 2004.  During this time, Christophe started the barbecue by lighting the dried vine branches that would cook our delicious steak bordelaise, served with a gratin dauphinois and a carafed Clos la Bohème 2007, and the Phare 2002. Once the cheese and home-made chocolate cake were also finished, it was time to get back to work!

The grapes climb into the destemmer
 

The tractor reversed the trailer full of harvested grapes to the reception area.  The grapes climb up a mechanized ladder from the trailer to the de-stemming machine, where the grape berries are separated from the stalks.  We all gathered round the sorting table to remove any bad grapes or stems that managed to get through the machine.  There were very few rotten grapes this year, which helped us with the sorting!

Remontage to mix the grape juice with the skin

Once the sorting was finished, we entered the winery to learn more about the first stages of fermentation which turns the grape sugar into alcohol.  We watched a "remontage" happen, where the must (grape juice) is drawn from the bottom of the vats and pumped back into the top to mix with the grape skins that remain at the top.  This process is very important to ensure that the tannins and colour from the grape skins are best extracted to help improve the quality of the wine.  We tasted the sweet tasting must directly from the vat, to better understand firsthand about fermentation.

Tasting the Grape Must in the cellar
 

After a quick tour of the cellar to see the barrels that are currently holding the 2009 vintage, and some cleaning of the tools used during the day, the time had come to say our farewells.  A huge thank you to all the clients, and to the staff at Château Beau Rivage for having brought such energy and good cheer to this harvest experience day.

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The Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience

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

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