Into barrels

Since my last post the new wines have been resting in their vats to allow the yeast and other sediment to settle out. Once this is done I siphon the clear wine into empty barrels waiting in the cellar. Credit to whoever built this house some 200 years ago since the cellar is located directly below the vat room, and there are two 10cm diameter holes running through its metre-thick vaulted ceiling. This makes filling the barrels as simple as passing a hose though the ceiling and opening a tap… not even any need for a pump.
The 2007 harvest fills just 23 barrels, which equates to a distressingly low 28 hectolitres per hectare. The better news is that at this early stage the quality appears excellent. Above is a recent photo of the cellar, which now contains both the 2006 and 2007 harvests, a total of 42 barrels (the equivalent of about 12600 bottles).