The Vine

The vine is a deciduous, biennial plant, which grows according to a regular cycle through the seasons. Everything begins in sping with the release of buds: bud break. Then the leaves appear in May, followed by flowers( fruit set) In July/August, the grape berries gradually change colour and the branches are covered with wood bark. This is veraison, (colour change of the grape berries) then the lignification ( hardening off). Only the ripening of the grapes determine the optimal time to harvest. In autumn, the vine loses its leaves and enters its rest period called dormancy.

Working on the vine

Pruning:

In order to balance the production of fruit, avoiding excessive development of wood; the annual pruning is between December and March. The length of the vine shoots, selected according to the vigour of the plant, directly controls the size of the harvest.

Management of the vine and its yields:

Throughout the growing season, different operations are carried out to limit plant growth: de-suckering, removing unwanted shoots; pruning, cutting back the ends of the branches; leaf thinning, which allows better exposure of the grapes to the sun, and finally harvesting.