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Wool in the vineyard?

Something is happening in the vineyard! At this time of year we can literally watch the sap shoot into the dry vines. The first new shoots and eyes look shyly into the light and stretch themselves in the first rays of sun. Each eye is still protected by a small coat made of very thin fibers. It looks like wool and that is why we winegrowers say that the vines are "standing in the wool."

With every degree of warmth and every ray of sunshine, the little eyes grow until they burst out of the wool. That is the moment of budding!

And that is also the moment when we winegrowers tend to get nervous when we look at the thermometer. Because without wool, the little eyes are defenseless against the frost. There is a risk of frost until the beginning of May - it's like an annual crime thriller. We don't need the crime scene at this time - we're already biting our fingernails with excitement...

A wild boar in the vineyard

In northern Germany there is a " cruel" custom called Easter fires . At temperatures just above zero, you are roasted from the front and frozen from the back while you desperately nibble on a bland piece of dough with a black crust that is glorified as stick bread.

Well, we in Weyher also have a cruel custom, but it's more fun: The Fermenters . Never heard of it?

It is a Palatinate tradition that is hundreds of years old: From Maundy Thursday until early Easter morning (when, as we know, Jesus was resurrected), all church bells are turned off. However, it is well known that the bell (apart from the sun) was the only way people could tell time back then. To ensure that the people of the Palatinate didn't run around completely out of their minds and timeless over the Easter holidays, the Gärrer came as a kind of bell replacement! They made noises with a wooden ratchet and called out the time loudly. They also announced when it was time to go to church and when people should go to pray.

Let's talk about bottlenecks.

When a winegrower hears the word bottleneck, a pleasant tingling runs down his (or her) back - after all, it is the quintessence of beauty and goodness through which the wonderful wine comes to us.

But in the last twelve months, the word bottleneck has taken on a whole new dimension... with a pretty concrete impact on our day-to-day winemaking, because in English the word »bottle neck« is used for bottlenecks. And we have more than enough of that at the moment! We had already reported that the bottles were running out a bit. We've solved the problem (although the color doesn't always stay the same).

However, if such an elementary thing as a normal bottle can no longer be bought thoughtlessly at the push of a button, winegrowers get a little nervous. You toss and turn in bed at night thinking about things that you thought were impossible a year ago...

Bend without breaking

Every child knows that winegrowers have to recognize fine nuances of taste. But we also have to show a lot of sensitivity in other areas - and especially at this time of the year. Because now it's time to bend without breaking!

First of all, the weather has to be right. The vines must have a little more juice than in winter so that they are not too dry and brittle. Ideally, a steady drizzle should be added. When the time is right, let's get started:

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