the harvest
We harvest by night. This allows us to take advantage of the lowest temperatures, giving us the freshest grapes, and resulting in a slower fermentation, which gives our wines richer aromas and more potent flavors. Good things take time.
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The grapes are selected individually, bunch by bunch, and placed carefully in containers, taking care not to squash or crush the grapes… yet. When morning dawns, as quickly as possible to avoid the rising temperatures, we take the grapes to the winery to continue the process.
Some people believe that our thinking affects our energy, and this is why each individual’s disposition towards the vines is of utmost importance; they must respect these magnificent beings.
There are vines that truly deserve our appreciation for their quality and robustness, in spite of their advanced age. Others require more care, or perhaps even a scolding for not giving us the results we expected.
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the process
Our winery is always spotlessly clean and ready for the important occasion of crafting wine. Our process is as follows:
The freshly harvested grape bunches are transported immediately to the pressing room, where we crush and de-stem.
The fresh must, skins included, is then moved over to the fermentation tanks where it begins its slow fermentation and awaits the optimal moment to be bottled.
Next, bottling and the first sealing, so that the fermentation process can be completed inside the bottles, producing an internal pressure from the naturally-occurring bubbles.
After the frozen winter months, in which the cold decants and stabilizes the wine, we move to disgorgement. In this laborious process, each bottle is unsealed and the lees (the deposits of precipitates from the aging process) are removed. The difficult part of this process is limiting the amount of wine and gas lost. However, it’s a worthwhile effort as it allows us to refine the wine and adjust its pressure.
