Old Wines

French Wine Making

I love going to France. The moment the plane touches the ground, I feel like I lived there before, maybe in another life. I also feel that if indeed that was the case I most likely would have been a vigneron, such a lovely and noble word. I adore wine. I enjoy how it feels in my mouth — how tannins of red Bordeaux almost anesthetize, or how the product of malo-lactic fermentation in white Burgundy tricks you and if you close your eyes, you think that you are at the picnic with friends and you eat sweet brioche, or how crisp and fresh taste of pink Provence undoubtedly taste of summer, laughter and joy during warm evenings.

Pure dedication

I have tremendous respect to all the wine-makers out there. I admire the French ones deeply. In France they make wine the way they have always been with little to no changes. No interference, no drastic change, just pure dedication. The way they grow vines and make wines is highly regulated, but had that not been the case it doesn't mean that the French would all of a sudden start to do things differently. They obey the laws of nature — if the year is too dry, they would not water the plants; instead we would have a more alcoholic wine due to the fruit’s early ripeness and sweetness, and the rainy year instead would give the higher level of acidity in wines. We have all seen how devastating the frosts were to the vineyards of Burgundy, and how touching it was to watch the efforts of winemakers to warm vineyards up with candlelights. For me this is as close as we can get to unbreakable fundamental ancient traditions.

Alesia

Jun 01, 2021