A year int he life of a winemaker

January

Late Summer in the southern hemisphere and the grapes are starting to ripen. It’s hardly surprising that our grapes are so full of flavour as the average Chilean year has at least 300 days of sunshine.

February

Sunny days and chilly nights as Summer turns to Autumn. The white grapes will be picked by the end of the month.

March

The harvesting of red grapes starts around the end of the month. The white wines are already fermenting in the winery.

April

Red grape harvest is in full swing, often at night! We want the grapes to be as fresh as possible and since it’s much cooler at night, these are the best conditions for grape picking. The winery is incredibly busy and we are working very hard.

May

The last of the red grapes are picked, Carmenere is last of all because it takes the longest amount of time to become fully ripe. Unripe Carmenere smells and tastes green and we don’t want that. Trip to London to meet with the UK trade and a preview of the 2008 Sauvignon Blancs.

June

2008 reds go into barrels and begin their maturation period. Launching the 2007 Casillero del Diablo red wines which due to perfect growing conditions in Chile, we believe will be judged an historic vintage.

July

Bottling the white wines so that they arrive in the UK in September. A trade trip to Asia and Ireland.

August

Pruning in the vineyard, getting ready for next year’s harvest. By pruning at this stage, we can control the amount of grapes we will get next year and keep the vine plant in balance. It’s exactly the same concept as pruning roses in your garden.

September

Looking at potential sites to plant a new vineyard. It is both challenging and exciting to select what could potentially be the first step towards a future award-winning wine. A trip to the UK.

October

Results are announced for many of the top International wine competitions.

November

The start of the Summer and the vineyards are in flower. This is my favourite time of year in the vineyard as the days become longer and warmer. We are busy receiving visits from many of our trade partners from around the world.

December

The vines are starting to grow and small bunches of grapes are appearing. Our vineyards are at their most beautiful; the surrounding plants and flowers are in full bloom.