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| Tips |
| Wine Tasting |
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In Burgundy today the majority of grapes are harvested by hand - the old fashioned way: ... backbreaking,  ...backbreaking,    ... backbreaking work! But some people are using machines for harvesting, representing about 10% of Burgundy's crop:   The machine drives over the vines and shakes them until the grapes fall off. It is very efficient - a machine can replace up to 150 people for a day's work. But you become much more sensitive to weather problems. However they are harvested, the grapes are then driven back to the estate and put directly into the press:  E. 119A.jpg +   .............................  The full press takes approximately 1 to 1 ½ hours to run completely to separate solid from liquid (the time needed to fill the trailer again). 
The juice is then kept in vats for 2 days for analysis and is then directly to barrels to finish the fermentation and aging process. The bottling takes place between 12 and 15 months later.  We would like to thank François Buisson from Domaine A. BUISSON-BATTAULT & Fils for his cooperation and allowing us to peek around his estate and take pictures of the 2001 harvest and wine making process. His typically small estate of 21 acres employed 24 harvest workers - a little more on Sunday when more family members and friends are available. He was quite pleased with his sugar and acidity levels. There was a little rot but nothing to worry about. Some hail hit Meursault in early August but not nearly as bad as Volnay. This winery lost 80% of the Pommard but remains very pleased with the way the Meursault wines are looking at this early stage. François Buisson and his father, now retired but still keeping an eye on winery activities. |
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