We talk a lot about technique. About soils, altitude, acidity, fermentations, winemaking decisions. But there's something that almost never appears in the technical sheets and yet underpins everything: love.
Love not as empty romanticism, but as attention, patience, and commitment. And this month, I think it's appropriate to mention it. Last year, we talked in the newsletter about Julius Caesar and Cleopatra, the great love that inspired the calendar we still use today and indirectly explains why we have the short month of February. Learn more here. But that's another story. Today we'll talk a little more about life today and why we do what we do.
Viticulture is, at its core, a long-term act of love. To love a vineyard is to accept it as it is: with difficult years, unexpected frosts, long droughts, and harvests that test one's faith. It is to return each year, to observe, to listen, to understand when to intervene and when to simply let it be. You cannot care for a vineyard without love; the land senses it. Haste is reflected. Indifference, too.
The same is true in winemaking. Making wine isn't about imposing an idea, but about accompanying a living process. To love wine is to respect its rhythm, to accept that not everything can be controlled, and that some of the most important decisions are the ones left unmade. Passion here isn't grandiose; it's silent, constant, almost invisible. It's in cleaning a barrel, in tasting a fermentation daily, in waiting.
And perhaps that's why wine connects with us so deeply. Because it's the result of many overlapping forms of love:
– love for the land
– love for time
– love for the craft
– love for sharing
In a world that demands speed and immediate results, wine reminds us that what is valuable needs care, and that caring for something—a vineyard, a project, a relationship—is a form of love.
This Valentine's Day, we're not just celebrating romantic love. We're celebrating love for what we do, how we do it, and who we share it with. Because when there's love in our work, you can feel it. And when there's love in our wine, it stays.
Let's raise a glass to that. 🍷
For the love that is cultivated, fermented, and shared.
