Les Vendages!

I’m sorry for the long silence, but I’ve had a bit of writer’s block.  And I’ve been busy…yes, I’m not just sitting around eating chocolate and cheese, I’ve been busy brushing up on my French.  I was counting the years that I’ve studied French the other day…it’s literally been 42 years.  I started studying when I was -2 years old, and it’s been a long haul.

In all seriousness, I have been studying French for the past 3 months through the Swiss French School in Lausanne.  In the past I’ve always tried to keep up with my (mostly spoken) French with weekly lessons.  I’ve had so many great teachers over the years – Laurence, Maryvonne, Florence – who have helped me get to the level I’m at today.  But life and work got in the way, and for the past few years I haven’t had my weekly chat sessions, so I felt that I was a bit rusty and should brush up.  The classes have been a great jump-start back to speaking and writing in French, and I’ve received many compliments (albeit somewhat backhanded ones, more of surprise that an American can speak French at all…we have a lousy reputation in the language department, so the bar is set pretty low).

So enough excuses, my classes are over, and I’m back to the blog.  We had such a fantastic time in early October helping with les vendanges – picking grapes in the gorgeous Lavaux vineyards at Alain Chollet’s vineyard in Villette.   Alain Chollet is a third generation winemaker whose home and the vineyard are set on impossibly steep slopes with breathtaking views overlooking Lac Leman and the Alps.  I can’t imagine waking to that view every day.  They say that every day is different but just as beautiful.

We started our day at about 8am with croissants and coffee and a short discussion with Alain about his vineyard - the history (his grandfather purchased the vineyard in 1921), the 12 types of grapes that he grows and his sustainable farming methods.  It was exciting to hear about his type of farming that uses less water, and how he’s been planting some of the older grape varietals to increase biodiversity.  We were a small team that day – only about 8 of us, mostly connected in some way to La Source medical clinic where his wife works, which is also where my friend Debbie works.  We had a pompier (fireman), a retired mathematics professor, now a painter, and a few veteran vendage volunteers who made up our crew.

Alain Chollet, the vintner, in the visitor's hut

After coffee, we were shown our harvest tools – small little razor sharp clippers with a sharp point at the end.  There was a discussion about the pheromones that our hands emit that seem to attract the clippers (that are somehow well-known to secretaries who get paper cuts – is this my French gone bad, or is this what he was saying?)  At any rate, that’s what he said, and we were told to hold the cluster of grapes from the bottom, and try to keep our hands away from the clipper blades.  One veteran volunteer showed us his scars from the prior year.  I also saw that the first-aide kit was out and ready.

Our first task was to pick the white Chassla grapes from the vines that go across the hill.  It turns out that clipping the grapes is the easy part.   Luckily, they had hired workers to haul the filled crates back to the “cave” where the wine was to be pressed.  Every once in awhile we stood and turned around to see the gorgeous view. 

At noon we went inside for a delicious meal (cooked by Alain’s wife), complete with their wine.  After our hour-long break we went back to the vineyards, this time to pick the pinot grapes that were planted in steep vertical rows.  We hauled our empty crates to the top of the hill, and worked two by two going down the vine, someone on each side.  You had to be careful to not include the finger of your partner (in my case Doug) along with your grape cluster, but Doug and I worked well together once we got the hang of it.

Alain Chollet and Debbie

Alain Chollet's visitor's hut is along the tourist trail through the Lavaux vineyards.  It's a place where you can sit and relax, enjoy the view, and taste their wine (available self-service inside the hut).

At some point in the afternoon I switched to work opposite of Debbie and as we were chatting away I happened to mention that it was always big excitement for the women in our neighborhood back home when the firemen were called.  I knew the second that I said it that I shouldn’t have (Debbie hasn’t changed from our nursing school days) and before I knew it, she was telling “le pompier” my comment.  NO DEBBIE!  He modestly said that it was similar in Switzerland, but mostly for the younger pompiers... to which Debbie replied, “Yes, but women “of a certain age” can also appreciate the older pompiers.”  STOP DEBBIE!!   I was basically mortified, and avoided all contact with the man, until, still chatting opposite Debbie, the clipper found my finger and started to bleed.  I had to sheepishly ask “le pompier” for a bandaid and muttered  “Merci, je ne l’ai pas fait exprès” (I didn’t do it on purpose)”.  So embarrassing!!

When the vendage was done, we assembled at a table next to the house overlooking the lake, and the grandmère brought out cake and ice tea.   From there we went inside the winery to help press the Chassla grapes.  The press was over 100 years old, set on a large piece of granite from the nearby Jura Mountains.  After a few presses (and tasting the delicious juice) we helped to clean up and were set to leave when Alain asked if we were in a hurry, did we have time for an “apéro”.  After a glass of their delicious Chardonnay, we left with 6 bottles of wine each, and a big bunch of Chassla grapes for our efforts.  Not bad for a day’s “work”!

The team

The grandparents

The end of a fantastic day

 Separating the grapes before the second press