Summer in the countryside: the binding of the vineyards

In every season the vineyards have different colors and characteristics. In this period the predominant color is green. The forms change according to the activities we perform on the vineyards.

In May and June the vines suddenly sprout new shoots and our main job is to select the best branches with a light pruning and then collect them on the cables so as to allow the sun to heat them better and mature the grapes. The branches are tied horizontally to the iron wires that connect one pole to the other, so that they can also have a more homogeneous distribution of the sap on all the growing shoots.

In order to ensure that the vegetation remains in height and thickness within the desired limits, we proceed to the operations of peeling, or topping the branches that vary according to their growth rate.

In July we perform thinning, as one of our objectives is to produce with a low yield per acre. An operation that requires a lot of care, consisting in removing some bunches during the summer – before ripening – so that the number and the distribution of the most resistant grapes are compatible with the desired level of maturation. In August, soil operations generally stop with the slowing of the growth of adventitious plants, but the vineyard control remains essential until September.

The binding is a necessary operation to ripen the grapes from the sun waiting for the September harvest.

It is a real pleasure to see our vine rows and our circular vineyard sprout every day waiting for the September harvest and the next production of Vernaccia di San Gimignano. Because “good wine is not made in the cellar but is made in the countryside”.