Veraison is the name for the grapes changing colour from green to black.  On the Cru Vinsobres Syrah the veraison has now finished and it's about half way through on the Grenache. In terms of timing this year looks a lot like 2015.  In 2015 we started the harvest on 8 September, in 2016 it was three weeks later than this on 28 September.  It looks like we will be early again this year so we have already started getting the winery ready.  In a couple of weeks we will do a first maturity test to … [Read more...]

This is the Syrah in Cru Vinsobres and as you can see things are looking good.  The bunches of grapes have now formed and in the next few weeks they will start to change colour.  Summer started so early this year, it seems strange to think that we are only in early July. Lots of hot weather still to come! … [Read more...]

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As summer starts the vines are looking good.  This shot shows the Syrah vines in one of our Cru Vinsobres plots.  The weather has been very warm over the last couple of weeks and the vines have responded by growing strongly.  Unfortunately the grass and weeds do likewise, but as you can see above we are beginning to get on top of those for the moment.  There is still lots of work to do in the vines though and we are also busy preparing to bottle the last of the 2015 wines in 10 days or so. … [Read more...]

It has been a while since I posted, so it's time for an update.  As you can see from the shot above with the first early morning rays of sun falling across the Domaine l'Ancienne Ecole vines, they are growing well.  No matter how on top of the vines you think you are in April, the speed of the growth of the vines in May and June, means that you are always running to catch up on the vineyard work and a flat tyre on the tractor didn't help!  The weather is set hot and sunny for the next week so … [Read more...]

Our new gite for this season, Le Mont Ventoux, has been up and running for a few weeks (see previous post), and now the terrace is also ready for the summer season. Perfect for relaxing with a bottle of Carpe Diem Rosé 2016.  Also this week we have had a super write up for our wines and gites in Terre des Vins (article in French). … [Read more...]

The vines continue to race away and are 10 to 14 days ahead of last year.  Nevertheless we managed to get a day away on Sunday and headed to the spectacular Col du Rousset.  The Col marks the southern entrance onto the Vercors plateau and the road which tumbles down from it to the Drôme valley is beautiful.  If you are staying here on the Domaine a drive to the Col with a leisurely lunch is a super little day trip. … [Read more...]

And here we go!  Bud burst is usually in early April, but here we are a couple of weeks earlier than last year.  Although we got some good cold weather in January, the weather in February and March (particularly the last couple of weeks) has been very mild.  The weather outlook is pretty good too - let's hope there are no late frosts! … [Read more...]

Still a bit of work to do, but we are getting there with our preparations for the new growing season.  The weather has been generally kind which has allowed us to get on with the work.  The pruning is finished and since the picture above was taken we have been through with the machine that chops up all the prunings that you can see in the grassed rows.  It is looking like bud burst is going to be early this year (more news soon) so no time to waste! … [Read more...]

Spring is sprung!  We have had some lovely sunny days this week with the temperatures up in the low 20s.  Signs of Spring are all around - above is the cherry blossom just about to burst open.  A couple of other shots below show the sweet almond trees in full bloom with their carpet of wild orchids below and the hedge around our gite in full bloom.  Bud burst on the vines is still three or four weeks away, but they are already starting to "weep" - with sap rising out of the pruned stems.  An … [Read more...]

I wanted to show you this picture that we took whilst getting ready for our recent bottling.  We have had a couple of good cold spells this winter which has let the winery and the wines get nice and cold.  This helps the tartrates to precipitate out of the wine and in this case they have formed this amazing undulating crust over the bottom of the tank.  If anyone knows why it does this rather than just being a flat layer on the bottom - please let me know! Meanwhile in the vines signs of … [Read more...]