11 July, 2022
Today we picked up a total of three fiberglass vats at two locations (Bourgeuil and Monnaie). One load involved used barrels that Thomas had bought to be better prepared for the upcoming harvest, the other one involved the repair of a barrel which at the same time got a new, more practical lid. All barrels will be used immediately after the wine will have been pressed. The wine ferments in them for a while before it is transferred to a wooden barrel and aged there.
So we rented an open truck from the local supermarket and set off. On site, I realized again and again that a winegrower has to be able to improvise. He should also be able to use ratchet straps. Note: »When you’re a winemaker, you have to be a mover, too!«
Thomas, attaching a cloth (›Malerteppich‹ in German, painter’s carpet) to one of the bigger of the vats so that wind can’t get inside and make it tumble. Or something!
Malerteppich, held by cling film
We made it! (I was only standing by to watch, actually. The man on the right is the winemaker who sold the vats to Thomas)
En route: a roundabout
At the entrance of Thomas’s cellar
Getting the vats down wasn’t too difficult. Also, we were lucky to have four additional helping hands. Out of the blue, two men suddenly stood in front of the cave. They were former dancers, as it turned out, and now working as a documentary filmmaker and as a wine agent, respectively. They were cycling along the Loire, for a couple of days, and wanted to taste Thomas’s wines. They got what they wanted after they had helped us getting the second vat down
The vat that had been repaired – by a specialist, second on the left, who is, at this very moment, working on a fibreglass version of an electric Citröen 2CV