Pooped

Spent the morning getting all the equipment and winery ready for tomorrow's grape harvest. The photo shows Ali on her knees scrubbing out a tank. It all has to be spotless, and it's really hard work. Big winemakers fill their tanks with water, lob in a cleansing solution, leave it overnight, then rinse it all away the next day. It uses a colossal amount of water. We're tiny winemakers so we use as little as possible.

The trailer is loaded with crates, buckets, secateurs and a hundred rubber gloves. The coffee is ground ready for the pickers' breakfast - we'll pick up croissants from the boulangerie on the way to the vineyard.

We have twenty helpers - way more than usual, but I think they are all volunteering because a) it's our last harvest, b) we're only picking a tiny amount and c) we've promised the pickers that they'll be on the label.

The pickers' lunch is prepared, the wine is chilled and we're ready for a jolly lunch together after the new vintage is underway.

Oh, and I also had to take my Mum to the doctor's and Ali took Flynn the husky to the vet in Pezenas. Apart from that, it's been a quiet day.