Happy Harvest 2015

It was a beautiful Saturday in late September 2015, after a very long, sunny and hot summer. And it is a beautiful harvest: the vines were strong, the grapes ripe and abundant. And thanks to the summer heat, the Suzuki fruitfly lost its ability to reproduce. We were a cheerful lot doing the harvesting, shipping and catering, so it turned out to be a real harvest feast. As usual, I am happy to say.

The grapes were high on the Öchsle scale this year, so I have to watch the drying very carefully in order to get just the right concentration. It is all there in the fruit already, there is not much that I can add. I really look forward to working in the cellar, the foottrodding and pressing, the smelling, tasting and listening. It takes all five senses to know when to interfere and when to just let nature run its course. It’s a fine balance between controlling and letting go – just like in life.