Every year, at the same time, a ballet of tractors parades through the parking lot of the Fontès cooperative cellar. From August to October, the harvest is an intense time for the winegrower and the cellar who juggle daily between weather forecasts, the maturity of the bunches, the sorting of the different qualities, the schedules, and the organization of the teams. A spiral of solidarity and strength that intensifies everyone's determination to complete each stage of winemaking with care. Respect for the raw material is the priority of oenologists.
For winegrowers, fatigue turns into excitement: hearing your alarm clock in the middle of the night, assessing the weather conditions in case of rain, bringing your teams together, then setting the tractors and harvesting machines in motion with great vigilance of course! In milder temperatures, the harvesting machines begin their comings and goings along the vines lit by the headlights. For the manual harvest, the teams leave at first light, pruning shears in hand and snacks nearby. Each day starts early because exposure to the sun alters the quality of the grapes. Work in the vineyard prepares work in the cellar. To motivate the troops and promote a good state of mind, the cellar employees make hot coffee available to all the tractor drivers who unload.
On the cellar side, the teams are ready and already waiting for the first tractors in order to process the juices as quickly as possible. Instructions are given and everyone has a function to perform. Director, oenologists, dock hostess, cellar manager and employees, all are on alert to react to the slightest problem. The grapes are emptied and already the first measurements indicate the weight and sugar concentration. The automations are launched to receive the harvest under close surveillance. The endless screw guides the harvest into the destemmer which separates the berries from the stalks. The berries fall into the conquest which pumps the harvest into the network of pipes intended for the vats and presses.
Breakdowns sometimes occur on vehicles in the vineyard or on the cellar docks. You have to manage these unforeseen events as they arise, that's part of the harvest. But the pooling of know-how and interpersonal skills is a tremendous asset, that’s what the cooperative is!
Then begins the production of wine. Compliance with each step is crucial, fermentation temperature, maceration duration, yeast management, everything is measured and adjusted in real time, day and night.
The satisfaction is palpable every day the work is accomplished. At the end of the harvest, we meet in the cellar parking lot to taste the fermented juices of the future vintage, while tasting delicious grilled meats. It’s the end-of-harvest meal that everyone is waiting for!