A warm week – it’s started with 22-23° but could be over 30°C by the weekend – but there’s a tricky storm forecast to get through on Thursday…
William Fevre will start picking on Thursday, same as many in Cote de Beaune. Other Chablis growers more likely next week
— Jasper Morris (@justjasper) September 24, 2013
Although they are in a minority, things are starting to get serious now; Olivier Lamy has already picked his first vineyard, and Patrick Javillier will also start now for some vines. As Jasper notes (above) many white wine producers will start before the week is out, though many wait, still assembling their pickers, chewing the cud – or making sugar readings. But many are also building up their arsenal of facebook pictures for their fans – nobody said wines were just made in the vineyards 😉
Of-course, some are more photogenic than others!
Pics ex: Bouley, Chicotot, Grivot, JN Gagnard, Roy
There are 2 responses to “les bunches à la facebooq…”
In the Côte Chalonnaise and the southern Côte de Beaune, opinions seem to be split. There are some (a minority, I believe) who think nothing is to be gained by waiting, they’ll get going while the nice weather lasts, i.e. tomorrow or friday. There are others who say: this fruit isn’t fully ripe yet, let’s wait untill at least the middle of next week.
Key in this discussion is the health of the chardonnay grapes, that are clearly much more compromised by grey mould than the healthy pinot noir grapes. One thing is sure: acidity levels are way up, and sugar levels are relarively low. The “maturité phénolique”, i.e. a nice, ripe taste, is not there yet for most vineyards, and only beginning to appear in some very well exposed parcels.
Richard Bos (JanotsBos, Meursault) told me they will start harvesting today.