Our 2017 harvest started more than 15 days ahead of the usual schedule. Our Viognier of La Martelle, a pretty 60-ares plot, matured in mid-August and we harvested it on August 23rd. The two previous years we had harvested it on September 2nd.
The quality matches the expectations, with a beautiful aromatic expression and a generous power. But the yield of our small cuvées proves, as for our fellow wine-growers of Languedoc, very, very reduced. There will be few bottles, for the second consecutive year. The heat and drought of July and August without a drop of rain blocked the development, despite a beautiful spring sprouting of the grapes which foreshadowed a beautiful harvest.
At this stage we already harvested 30% of our surfaces: all our white, our rosé, and the first plots of early red. The bulk of our plots of red, Syrah and Grenache, are still waiting, especially those located in the upper-altitude land.
