Lovely to see the horses working in the vineyards of St Nicolas de Bourgueil yesterday afternoon. With all the rain we’ve had this year, there’s a lot of standing water around which makes it nigh impossible to pass through the vineyards with a tractor without seriously damaging the soil through compaction. So, bring on the horses. They have a light touch, don’t damage the soil structure, fertilize the soil as they go and are a pleasure to watch.
We noticed while driving through the vineyards of St Nicolas de Bourgueil and Bourgueil today that practically no-one has tied their vines down.
As it’s been warm enough to eat outside this week we enjoyed a simple dinner of home made burgers, roasted garlicky plum tomatoes and a fresh green salad. L’Envolée from Gérald Vallée was our wine of choice.
Anne-Claire Vallée was on top form at the Salon des Vins de Loire. We tasted the current range and one or two new wines to the portfolio.
The 2014 vintage is drawing to a close here in the Loire with the last passes through the vineyards of the Layon taking place over the weekend. Some Chenin was still hanging in the Layon on Sunday but I dare say with the break in the weather today and strong rain, this marks the end of the harvest for most people.
Grapes are looking superbly healthy and there are plenty of them at Domaine de la Cotelleraie in the St Nicolas de Bourgueil appellation here in the Loire valley.
Le tasting room’s Blog of a days tasting and food and wine pairing with Arnaud Lambert, one of the Loire valleys rising stars.
