Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Once my final coat was complete it was a total transformation. The bathroom was gleam-
ing cream, white, glass and chrome. Between my paintwork on the wall tiles, the new
floor and Jean-Marc's fitting of the bathroom components that I had searched Bordeaux
for, it looked like something that would happily pass in a stylish boutique hotel. Jean-Marc
stopped by to fit the last element: the taps on the shower.
'It's very pretty,' I said.
'Ça fonctionne,'
declared Jean-Marc, making it clear that in the world of plumbing, func-
tion was far more important than form.
Sean got on with the pruning, key to the health of the vine and to excellent grapes. The
vines looked like scraggly bundles of dead twigs attached to small tree trunks. The first
step was to prune each vine from this unruly state down to one or two carefully selected
canes that would be the bearers of next year's bounty. Canes are the young branches that
grow from the main trunk of the vine. There are many and selecting the right ones for the
following year is a skilled job requiring concentration, judgement and stamina. Sean lost
weight, gained muscle and looked healthier despite the harsh weather. In their hibernating
state the vines were becoming his friends.
When we arrived, the farm was a large chunk of land distinguished by obvious markers
like buildings and tracks. Now it was becoming familiar, each part of the vineyard had a
name and a personality. In front of the house looking down into the Dordogne valley was
the merlot vineyard we called Lower Garrigue. Running away from the
pressoir
, the part
of the winery where the grapes are pressed at harvest time, were the vineyards we called
Hillside, consisting of young sauvignon blanc, ancient sémillon and merlot. Beyond Lower
Garrigue heading down to the valley floor were a set of vineyards called Lenvège which
originally belonged to the Château Les Tours de Lenvège, a half-kilometre from us.
The original medieval tower of Les Tours de Lenvège was built in the twelfth century
for protection. It contrasted dramatically with the main château in the village built in the
late seventeenth century in a more decorative style. Our farm was the look-out. This was
particularly important during the period of English rule of Aquitaine, and also in the wars
of religion when the powerful merchants of Bergerac were Protestant but most of the sur-
rounding villages, like ours, were Catholic. We were slowly getting to know our new place.
It was not just vines that Sean met while pruning; he regularly saw deer, hares and pheas-
ant. One day he came face to face with a giant wild boar. The boar blew several smoky
breathsintothecoldmorningairthensaunteredoffwithoutcausinganytrouble.Still,when
he didn't come in at the expected time I was thrown into a state of panic. The electric
