We will be present at the Vignerons Indépendants de France's Salon in Strasbourg for the fourth time, from 14 to 17 February so come and meet us, and taste and buy our Côtes du Rhône and Vinsobres wines. For more information about the salon and how to get there, click here. Download your invitations by clicking here. … [Read more...]
Grenoble
Our first Salon of 2020 will be in Seyssins , near Grenoble, from 7 to 9 February so come and meet us, and taste and buy our Côtes du Rhône and Vinsobres wines. For more information about the salon and how to get there, click here. Download your free invitation for two here. … [Read more...]
Panary in Provence
We welcomed Paul from Panary and his students again this year. The kitchens were filled with the smell of baking and the bread oven was put to good use. And we got to eat lots of yummy bread. For more information about Panary and Paul Merry's courses see the Panary website. … [Read more...]
Lycra?
Ever wondered what happened to unused lycra? Well here is one use: tying on. We tie each vine onto the trellising to provide support later in the year when the vine is covered with leaves and laden (we hope) with grapes. Also available in white. … [Read more...]
Spring Flowers
Spring has arrived early and the Almond trees were magnificent this year, with no rain to ruin the flowers … [Read more...]
Bud Burst!
This is in our Grenache plot just beside the winery and as you can see we have bud burst! After a wet cool few days last week the warmer weather since the weekend has brought everything on quickly. It looks like the weather is set fair for the next week or so which will give the vines a good opportunity to grow away strongly. … [Read more...]
Bottling news
We have just bottled the 2017 Carpe Diem Rosé, the 2016 Terra Firma and 2016 Esprit du Nord. Usually when we bottle it is freezing cold or roasting hot, but last Friday, as you can see, we had a beautiful day. Meanwhile in the vineyard we are almost at bud burst. More on that soon...... … [Read more...]
Spring time
As the days lengthen towards the equinox next week the rhythms of Spring are well underway. In the courtyard the daffodils resolutely shrug off the cold, the hail and the wind and the rosemary is in flower and alive with the hum of bees. The almonds are always the first trees to emerge from their winter hibernation and the warm weather earlier this week has coaxed them into flower too. Fortunately we have had a reasonably wet winter and early Spring to make up for the exceptionally dry Autumn … [Read more...]
Happy New Year
As the sun rises over a snowy Mont Ventoux to welcome in 2018 we would like to wish everyone the very best for 2018. … [Read more...]
Sécheresse
Sécheresse is the French for drought and we are getting to know lots about it! Some welcome rain at the weekend has left the foothills of the Alps snow-capped, but with only two or three weeks to go this year we are well short of normal rainfall totals. On average here we expect about 750-800mm a year. 2014 was very wet with 1082 mm, well over a metre! 2015 was a little on the wet side of normal with 827mm and 2016 a little on the dry side with 736mm. This year however we are only at 455mm. … [Read more...]
It’s all in the mix
Blending day is always great fun. An afternoon at the lab with our oenologist and a sample bottle of everything in the winery. After several hours trying this and that and a bit of this or perhaps a bit of that we have agreed on the blends for the La Dame Anglaise, L'Essentiel and Esprit du Nord 2016 and also for the Terra Firma 2017. As you can see it's tough work, but someone has to do it. … [Read more...]
Murmuration
Each Autumn the starlings gather and provide us with a great show. … [Read more...]