La Clarière

8.00am. Dawn bread run, road up on high ridge is clear, cold, vines going golden. Huge red sun half over horizon, but valleys filled with mist. Harvesters not looking happy, coughing, flapping arms to get warm. They don't have warm clothes! Why? We are picking La Clariere Cab Franc this morning. Cab Sauv this PM.

Nearly run down little Maitena (Flying Winemaker) come up from Midi to taste what the grapes she harvested for us have turned into at Le Chai.

Breakfast to sound of Tom and Scott doing Presbytere morning pump overs. Barely awake. (It was a good evening). Me then writing stuff for my Boss Emma. Send message to wife back home; today she's picking Pinots at Wyfold. No response of course. It'll be mayhem.

Go down to Chai. River is full of boats, men fishing. Warm water + cold air = more fish, apparently. Mark and James give me my first taste through their 2011 whites. Mostly finished ferment.

Highlights
From St Radegonde:
Tank 1 Sauvignon Blanc (Laithwaite) done with J-MS’ traditional yeast
Tank 2 Sauvignon Blanc done with James' NZ yeast. Worlds apart. Blending the two will give complexity.
Barrel-fermented Sauvignon Blanc … richer, longer … rather more expensive, though!
Sauvignon Gris … big tank. Glad of that. Is a cracker.
Dry Bordeaux White with Botrytis Sémillon. My little mad idea for this year. Not dry yet but the 'Marmalade' flavour is there and Mark is happy.
Viognier from Limoux. The one in cask is nice. Tank stuff WILL be fine … but not at the moment it isn’t. Not worried because Mark is very happy with.
Carignan Blanc. Every year now, I ask Mark to do a rare new grape. This one looks very promising. Using a trial yeast no-one else has. Characterful.
Hyper-oxidated Chardonnay. It’s a little trick they use to make a very different wine that blends in for complexity. But it doesn't taste oxidised or "à la Espiet" as they say. Sarcastically. (We've had wine makers in that cellar since '86 … doing cracking stuff. But the cellar's own wines have not changed a jot. Very Traditional. Very yellow.)

All meet up at La Clarière for a lunch of Morue (cod). Cod and potato soup, salad, then cod 'Brandade'. So for first time ever we just serve whites at table. Ste. Colombe natives are incensed. Maitena's own Xacoli from the hanging vineyards of San Sebastian coastline is a first. Blasts the mouth clean. Not so much a taste as a sensation. Love it. By contrast the last-week-bottled La Voute is a cream dream. And last year's Baron's Roussanne!!! Makes you weep. If we've any left, grab it. Because none was made this year. Grapes rained into pulp. Sweet little Maitena was supposed to harvest it but said "Grapes were "sh**". Her English is improving. Baron probably still apoplectic.

Just writing this after lunch. Nothing to do. Emails have stopped. Has world ended now Steve (the hero) has gone?

Hello England. Knock-knock. I know you are busy. But send me some work. Eh?