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The Vine Guardians

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This is our Vine Guardian members page in assocation with Vin en Vacances.

Here you can keep up to date with Leanne and Emmanuel, our life at the vineyard, whats happening at our winery and any upcoming events planned. 

If you or anyone you know would like to join the guardianship program please click here for more information and how to join. 

Wendy's latest newsletter here...

How did it all start? Click here...

You can also follow us on our dedicated Vin Guardian social media pages: 

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What's coming up?

Indonesian & Music in the Vines.

Wednesday July 19th 2023

Our dear friends Marcel & Petra of Fait Mason are going to cook up a fabulous Indonesian dinner in the vines, in the early evening at 7pm.  This event is open to all Guardians and their friends, the more the merrier we think. Price €45 per person. 

Reserve your place now, no need to pay anything until closer to the time.

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Harvest Picnic

Sunday September 24th 2023

We are going to make the annual harvest event into something a little different this year. We are still making plans and will tell you more about it as soon as everything is in place and to help us plan it would be helpful to know how many of you are interested in coming. This event is open to all Guardians and their friends so if you are interested please drop Wendy an email letting her know how many people might be in your party.

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Our latest news and photos:

Barrel Tasting May 2023

Wendy's newsletter April 2023

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Budbreak Walk
This year's budbreak walk took place in a vineyard close to the Canal du Midi and although it was a blowy day it was dry and the sun shined for us and we had a great turnout. We began the walk alongside the canal and headed for a Syrah vine where Emmanuel explained the training system he uses there which is called 'Guyot'. This training system is sometimes called 'Replacement Cane' because at the end of each year all the canes that held the grapes will be pruned off apart from one which will then be laid along the wire for the next year's growth. This method is generally used to encourage a higher yield and therefore only used for varieties that tend towards too low a yield, for although high yield should be avoided when aiming for quality wine, too low a yield may make that vineyard unsustainable.
 
The Syrah vines are planted on land that is just outside the Minervois appellation and Emmanuel therefore sells this fruit to be made into Pays d'Oc wine. A short walk up a slope in the direction of the canal brought us into the appellation and here Emmanuel has planted a block of Vermentino (Rolle in French) and right next to it Viognier which is now allowed in Minervois appellation wines. It was interesting to see that the Viognier vines were budding whereas the Vermentino had hardly begun which demonstrated nicely how some varieties are early and others are late budders. This also translates into the harvesting time so we can expect Vermentino to be one of the last of the white grapes to be harvested.
 
Emmanuel has trained these vines along a wire using a method called goblet which usually does not involve a wire. You will see goblet vines in Beaujolais and all across the south of France, in Languedoc as well as in the Côtes du Rhône and also in Spain as many Mediterranean vines do not need a wire for support and therefore this method is ideal. They look like an arm thrust up through the earth with gnarled fingers curling towards the sky. So why has Emmanuel trained them along a wire? The answer is to open the 'hand' and allow air to circulate easily and aerate the vines during times of humidity and so reduce the chance of mildew.
 
Back at the winery Leanne & Emmanuel had laid on a delicious apéro and gave us all the chance to taste the 2022 Grenache based wines for the first time and I can report to those who couldn't make it to the walk, that they are all delicious.

A note from Emmanuel 
At the vineyard: All the vines are now showing buds, except the latest budding vine which is our Cabernet Sauvignon. Emmanuel is very busy at the vines now turning soil to take away grass and weeds and to activate the bacteria in the organic matter which turns into minerals that the plant can absorb. The vines need this now and throughout the "green" growing phase. We are now starting to place the tabs of Pheromones, these are "sexual confusion" defences for the vines to protect them against the worms of eudemis "european grapevine moth" and cochylis moths. At this time of year, we are also lowering the wires at the vines before the buds get too big so as to not break any. These wires are raised back up gradually two levels during the season as the branches grow longer. 
At the cave: Not much is happening in the cave at the moment in terms of winemaking, as the reds are aging a little longer before their bottling towards the end of May.... 

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how did it start

How did the Vine Guardians start? 

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We were contacted in 2021 by our friend Wendy Gedney, owner of Vin en Vacances (wine and food tours company). Wendy had heard of the terrible frosts of that April which had badly affected us and many other viticulteurs in our region and beyond and she, along with her colleague Kate, wanted to help out in some way. 

With this in mind they created the Guardian program, which was launched in June 2021 and we have to say, has been a fantastic success! 

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Wendy's words about the guardianship program:

"We reached out to our customers offering them a chance to come to the rescue by adopting a row of vines in return for a case of wine and a deep-rooted connection to the Puy vineyard. The response was fantastic, and we now have well over a hundred Guardians. Their support has helped this small independent winemaker to overcome the damage, thrive again and continue to produce delicious Languedoc wines.

Guardians who have met Emmanuel Puy have found him to be a delightful young man who has a great passion for the land and the wine he produces in very small quantities. They have enjoyed the connection to his vineyard, and we were delighted that so many have renewed their Guardianships and continue to support him. Guardians enjoy seeing their name at the end of their row of vines, it’s like having your own little piece of a French vineyard. They also enjoy the bi-monthly newsletters that keep them up to date with news from the Puy vineyard and the Languedoc region.

We are grateful to Must & Lees and The Princess & The Bear for taking the wines to the UK and the USA so that people in those countries can become Vine Guardians and receive wines directly to their door.

Become a Guardian of a row of Languedoc vines and enjoy the wines, the connection to the land and know that you are supporting a talented wine maker. Learn more by clicking in the box where you live."

There are two levels of guardianship to choose from

By joining the program you will become a guardian of a row of vines for a year... 

Grenache Guardianship – €60 per year

This level of guardianship will bring you:

  • 6 x bottles, domains mixed case

  • 10% discount on wine purchases

  • Annual tasting & visit to the domain

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Carignan Guardianship– €100 per year

This level of guardianship will bring you:

  • 6 x bottles of  the top red wine

  • 10% discount on wine purchases

  • Annual tasting & visit to the domain

  • Invitation to all complementary events

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Emmanuel et Léanne Puy

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