The time has arrived, it’s September again. This is a very important month because it takes with it the core activity of my winery: the grape harvest. And now, I reap the rewards of a year’s work: all the cares given to my vines turn into the long-awaited crop and, finally, into the vintage 2018 wine.
The meaning of harvesting: my point of view
In this piece I won’t focus on how this new vintage will be. Rather I’d like to explain you what harvesting means to me. Its meaning has been passed on to me by my grandfather, Ernesto Saffirio. I’ve always lived the harvesting as a kind of ritual, with a deep impact not only on the land but also on our society. The grape picking days were always the most awaited by the farmers. In my heart I still remind of me as a child, looking at all the countryside around me moving in a big ferment. It was at the first sunrise that the harvest started: great passion and strong resolve were our only working tools. A first bunch in the basket, then another one and so on, till the basket was full and ready to be moved to the cellar. Every ripe bunch was the outcome of the hard work and the ongoing commitment of all the farmers: they treated each grape as a son. Nowadays we use modern tools and we make specific analysis on sugar and acidity levels in order to identify the best time to start harvesting. But we don’t use any technology in our countryside. So, me and my assistants live the harvesting days always with the same mood, coming from the past.
Harvesting: a liaison between land and Community
The ritual of harvesting is the final step of all the work made in the wineyard throughout the year, a ritual in wich are involved all the vine workers. It’s a kind of relay that joins the grape vine to the bottle. For me harvesting is exactly this: a meeting between our Community and our land. As I told you some time ago, in my opinion, wine is something alive, with a vital force of its own. I don’t feel myself as a “wine producer”. I feel more like an actress playing in the game of Nature, instead: I help the plants so that they can grow up in the best way possible. For this reason I’ve decided to produce wine with a more and more sustainable approach, with a deep respect for land, vine and all the surroundings.
“The care of our land from the vineyard to the bottle, in wich all your cheers become a tribute to our community and to our countryside. Think of that when you’ll taste one of my wines!”
Sara Vezza
Next events “Harvesting 2018”
In order to share with all of you – beloved followers of my winery – the key moment of the harvest, I’ve planned two events in October.
- The harvest of the gnome:
an event for both young and old. You will pick the grapes with us and then experience the grapes pressing! It will be not only an amazing day but also an education moment, to pass on to the children the value of a so important period for this company. If you want to participate click here
- The harvest party:
the harvest party has always been a very important event in which all the Community was involved. In the same spirit of the bygone days, we wait for you: you can enjoy the guided tour of our winery. You will breathe the fermenting wine and have the “Farmer’s lunch”: a platter of cold cuts, three starters, dessert and a tasting of our wines, of course.
Come with us! For your reservation click here
