flowers and wine

 christophe and i took sunday afternoon off (!) and went on a botanical walk with the lovely folk from la maison d'abeille up in the black mountains. it was wonderful to be back in the mountains, the lushness and the fresh air. i thoroughly enjoyed being guided...i have been busy with our wine tours these days and been enjoying sharing with all our wonderful guests but some times it's nice just being the listener. 

Mai à la française

 in france the month of mai has four statutory holidays.... in one month! and on top of that the french have come up with the wonderful idea to 'faire le pont' meaning if a statutory holiday falls near a weekend, for example a thursday or a tuesday they take the monday or friday off as well. that could be a total of 8 days off in one month not including week ends. i do love this culture.

Barcelona

when we are not tending to the vines, picking grapes, making wine, working the soil, bottling wine, sharing wine, selling wine.... well we don't get much time off around here what with this wine business, not to mention our pass times like keeping bees, growing a vegetable garden and running an art studio. 

(in my next life i am going to be a sloth and learn to slow down.)

i love running our own wine domain and all the pleasures that go along with creating a product we truly believe in and are passionate about but it's hard to shut off and take a break so our little trip down to Barcelona was like a breath of fresh air.

       

   

Barcelona is a fantastic city to visit with kids. we chose to focus on Gaudi and started with the 'sagrada familia' on our first night, seeing it at night only adds to the magic. after a lot of wide eyes and "holy cows" we celebrated our first night in the city with a very late dinner of tapas, the boys loved the tiny portions and the staying up late.

in Barcelona you can't walk far with out running in to a gaudi building, my kind of tourism with kids. we wandered the streets people watching, eating ice cream and checking out the amazing architecture.
    

 parc guell is possibly my favourite moment of our trip. we packed a basket full of snacks, wine and some funky hand made glasses and enjoyed it all in a space you really have to see to believe.
thanks jo anne and clinton for the wonderful time, i am so glad to have shared it with you.   

definitely my kind of exercise these days.....


photo found here 


ps i promise more posts soon, we have been very busy around here. i can't wait to tell you all about it. 

wild vine yard leeks

nothing warms a mothers heart like a hand picked bouquet, you can imagine the state of my heart to return home to this hand picked wheel-barrel of wild leeks! the boys went a little crazy in the vine yards after last weeks rain, when the soil was just perfect for picking. leeks for dinner every day this week...with a glass of la benita they are like a piece of spring time on your plate. 

wine sunshine and rusty nails

.......still working on 'la toilette' in our tasting room, i have moved on from plaster to wood and even getting my hands into a little lime.... just as i was pulling out nails from this beautiful old door the sun came out and we had to stop for aperitif hour, there is no better place to work into the evening than a wine cellar....life is good.  

 all of you Winnipeg'ers eagerly waiting for a glass of La Combe du Jardinier will be happy to know your wine is boxed up and on it's way across the atlantic! you should be popping a cork in a matter of months (it's a long trip!)