(Warning: this post is long!) (And after reading it, understand it nor have I published anything, nor have I distributed no wine in the last month!)
the title was going to put something like "crisis management" or "I need a vacation" or "How NOT to Take a Wine Project" or even "planning? Never heard of it! ", But in the end I thought maybe something more simple and direct.
I'm actually writing this for myself so that you can clarify in my mind what I have done over the past month, what I'm doing now (and why!) And I have to do in the near future " why I've been running around here and there and I have not had a moment to stop and think!
In the background is the issue of pruning. We should have started to prune in January, but for one reason or another did not start until March, was a little late but not too late for us (depends somewhat on the weather, latitude and the number of strains have to prune).
slope: insert photo unpruned vine (the photos are on my laptop, which has a "critical error Drive" so I have to take to fix
the optimum period for pruning is from time fall leaves (when the sap is removed to the roots and trunk and enters his vineyard during winter) and before the sap begins to flow again in spring when temperatures rise. We estimate that we could trim the two vineyards (2 hectares in total) in 8 man-days, ie 4 days 4 days John and me. No problemo! But then came 'events'.
The first event was the Natural Wine Fair in Barcelona (March 27), which meant that no pruning that weekend, and also lost another day to bottle, cork, label and ship wine to the fair. Insert photo
The Fair was a huge smash, and apart from all the things I wrote in the previous post also made two interesting contacts:
1. The first was a potential investor who is interested in investing in wine Ambiz! We reached the point where we need to increase our production of wine if you want to be a viable small business, instead of going part-time as we have been doing the past 8 years. Basically, we need some external funding to hire more vineyards, renting a larger warehouse, invest in some equipment and to cover expenses. All this is very difficult and time consuming, and we are looking at different options, such as a loan (bank or cooperative), private investors, or both. In short, this topic is 'parked' for now, because it is very complex and can not cover my head right now with everything else!
2. The second contact was such an interesting Opaz Ryan. After a brief talk at the show, invited me to write a post about 'natural wine' to your website - Catavino. Ryan, like many others, is a bit skeptical about natural wines, but the most important and wonderful thing is that you're curious, you have an open mind and want to know. I was super-easy to write this post - I think the force was with me - and I did it in 1 hour or less. I am very happy, because it is the first article 'Serious' I've ever written! That is, an article on something different from the usual themes and activities of the vineyard and winery usually write in this blog.
... and talking about writing posts, ... 2 months ago, another writer (Fiona Beckett, London, who writes a blog about natural wines) asked me to write a post on the use of sulphites, but I've been struggling with the subject since then - I do not go!
Finally, after Barcelona, \u200b\u200bMadrid and back to reality, and managed to prune a little midweek, hoping to give myself over the weekend. But what happened? Well, another event! I completely forgot that a few months ago we signed up for another fair, Eco-Festi-Ball, in Torres de la Alameda (Madrid) was a European Traditional Dance show, with organic products market. Another fund pruned!
insert photo festival was very good. People had come from all over Europe, and discovered a little world of dance. Cool! I must confess that I had no idea that this was a festival of dance - I thought it was a sort of market for organic products! This is what happens when you do not bother to read the program! In fact, the other producers (olive oil, bread, fruit and vegetables, quinoa, etc) all of the complaining lack of interest by the public, and some do not even come on the second day. For wine producers, however, it went very well, and even sold a couple of boxes a bar / restaurant at the fair. It seems that the wine and dancing go together!
best day for us was when our table suddenly collapsed and about 60 bottles of wine and 90 glasses fell to the ground. The noise was so tremendous that the music stopped and there was complete silence in the room for a few seconds. An existential-surreal moment! As it turned out only broke 3 bottles of wine, but instead he broke all the glasses least 3.
collapsed table insert photo
The second day of the show, John and I split - he went to the festival while I was attending a consumer group (organic products). "EcoGal" are Galapagar (Madrid) and about 20 people came to visit the vineyard and the winery and meet the winemaker! So that morning we went to the vineyard where I tried to answer your questions about organic wine (some of them were very difficult!). Then we went to the winery for lunch and wine tasting. And to answer more questions about natural and organic wines. Insert photo
group
few days later, my partner (of love, not business!) Had surgery appendicitis - and suddenly without warning! Is recovering well, but still remains at home right now as I write!
The next event was an invitation to dinner with organic wine producers. 3 of Andalicia came, and I could not refuse to go! These were: Barranco Oscuro (Lorenzo), Cauzón (Ramon), Maren (Jose Miguel) and Almaty (Alfredo) of Valladolid and a wine distributor (Luisa de Vinosautenticos). See photos and comments here on the blog of Nacho Bueno. The next day I went to his taste and presentation in The Bullet Montecarmelo, and post-tasting beers with them!
add photos
And what else? (Because, yes, there are more). Now I called the U.S. importer (JosePastorSelections - the same as last year) and says he wants a pallet of wine, but you love already! - To be in New York for presentation in June.
So ...
- Do we have enough bottles? Fortunately, yes. No one had asked for a new pallet of bottles a few months ago, but have accumulated more than 1000 cylinders used - that we return our local consumers.
- Do we have enough corks? No! urgent calls and emails to our supplier (Salmantina of cork) calling to us quick errand.
-? We tags? No! urgent calls and emails to our loved designer (Hello why), but is on vacation, so to wait again!
- We AVIN antics and those QR codes so cool? No! Priority Mail to André riberinhos (of Adegga) - and is so fast that sends me the email vuenta. Now you just have to cut and paste on the labels.
QR code to insert picture
- Do we have boxes? No! expedited mail to our supplier (Cartonajes Hurtado). Dece that sent next week
- Do we have a special pallet, plastic, approved, approved U.S. Customs? Incredibly, yes! Last year a neighbor gave us a wine cellar. Fortunately it would have been difficult to find one quickly.
So that's what I'm doing now and what I'll be doing next week: bottling, corking, labeling, put in boxes and assemble the pallet.
But that's not all! Last Saturday I was invited to be interviewed in a campaign of 'slow food', and of course, could not say no! I had no time to prepare and simply showed up there not knowing what to expect. And it was super-interesting. A couple are spending 40 days in bed (a bit like John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1969), and each days invite someone to chat on her bed. Inviting all sorts of people, but related in some way with life 'slow'. Here is the link to my session here. (I'm on wine explayánandome natural, organic viticulture, the rates of different types of bacon!).
I think that's it. All this is apart from the normal daily routine of taking children to school, pick them up, and go to work at the office!
Oh, I almost forgot: a few weeks ago another blogger (aka Chris Penwarden @ Singapour) Singapore Interviewer mail me for a post which he published in his blog on Earth Day (on 29 April). That was no problem because I did mail in my 'spare time'. Here is the link to that post.
Perhaps one day, if I find the time, and after sending a pallet of wine to the U.S., and after writing the post to Fiona, I'll have a nervous breakdown quickly, or I'll catatonic for a while - but only until next event or activity, that certainly is approaching and as I write
Reflection: Writing this really helped me see things in context. Basically what happened is that I inadvertently did I get into a lot of promotional activities, and I have not done any work of vineyard or cellar. So I think that is enough for 'activities' for now - and from the vineyard and winery!
Last
horrible thought: I just realized that this year I have not even seen our new vineyard in Villarejo. Juanillo has pruned by himself.
