For a week, I helped with the grape harvest at Makalié in Baden. Long days in the vineyard and cellar showed me how much labor, attention, and love go into a single bottle of wine.
How I ended up at Makalié in Baden
I got in touch with Makalié through Wendy, owner of restaurant Stiel in Rotterdam. I met Wendy during my last wine course. She herself stayed at Makalié for three months two years ago.
Together with Wendy and Lizzy, I made plans to go to Germany for a week to help Karoline and Max, the owners of Makalié, with the grape harvest. In hindsight, we turned out to have chosen exactly the right week. This year's harvest was much earlier than usual, and we were able to help complete it. When we left for the Netherlands, all the grapes had been picked.
Makalié is a small-scale winery in Müllheim, in the German wine region of Baden. Karoline and Max describe their philosophy as 'Return to nature'. They don't want to fully control nature, but rather observe closely what the vineyard and grapes need.
They work according to the principles of natural wine. Curious? Read more about Makalié.
The reality of picking grapes
Picking grapes sounds romantic, doesn't it? What you might forget is that a vineyard is also just a farm.
Every morning we started together at 7:00 AM with breakfast at Karoline and Max's home. By 8:00 AM, we were in the vineyard. There was time for coffee in between, but then we quickly continued.
We worked with an international team of about eleven harvest workers, all from different backgrounds. A full harvest like this takes two to three weeks. When you read that, hopefully you realize how much work goes into this important moment of the wine year.
All day long, you cut the bunches from the vines. At the same time, you inspect each bunch, remove bad or damaged grapes, and fill the crates. The first quality selection therefore already takes place during picking. That requires much more attention and precision than I had expected beforehand.
Of course, there was plenty of chatting during work, and no shortage of music either. It's harder, longer, and more intense than you expect, but at the same time, incredibly enjoyable.
Do you enjoy being outdoors and want to experience how much work goes into a bottle of wine? Then helping with the harvest for a week is a wonderful experience. Just don't expect a relaxing yoga retreat, although you will still find mental peace.
Not every grape makes it into the wine
Selection during picking is incredibly important. Unfortunately, hail had severely damaged some vines and grape bunches. Some of the grapes had burst open, attracting insects. Other grapes had simply dried out.
These damaged grapes cannot go into the wine. You therefore have to cut them out of the bunch one by one, so that only the good grapes remain. The ripeness also determines which grapes are included and which are not. This requires extra selection work and ultimately leads to a lower yield. At the same time, you see here how important the winemaker's craftsmanship is: the quality of the final wine begins with every choice made in the vineyard.
From Spätburgunder to the tank
After picking, the full crates were taken to the winery. There, the grapes either went into cooling or were processed immediately. For the Spätburgunder, the stems had to be removed from the grapes. This is called destemming, and fortunately, it's usually done with a machine. After that, the grapes went into the tank, and the process towards fermentation could begin.
The empty crates also required considerable attention. They were covered in grape juice on all sides and had to be thoroughly cleaned before they could be reused. And believe me: grape juice is sticky enough to almost glue your hands to such a crate.
What does natural wine actually mean?
With natural wine, the winemaker tries to intervene as little as possible. The grapes are organically grown and harvested by hand. Fermentation starts spontaneously, with the yeasts naturally present on the grapes and in the cellar. Few or no additives are used during the winemaking process.
With conventional wine, a winemaker has more options to control the process and, for example, the taste, color, and shelf life. This can be done with selected yeasts, additives, filtering, or other techniques.
Natural wine does not automatically mean that there is no sulfite in the wine at all. During fermentation, sulfite can occur naturally, and within the guidelines of Vin Méthode Nature, a limited amount may be added before bottling. The main difference is that the grape and nature determine the end result as much as possible.
Love for wine and for people
Love for nature is central at Makalié. But the same goes for the people who come to help during the harvest.
Every day, an elaborate lunch and a delicious dinner were prepared for us, made with fresh, organic products. Even Ottolenghi had competition: I have rarely eaten so well for a week.
During lunch and dinner, we tasted two to three wines together. We shared knowledge, experiences, and stories. As a result, the harvest felt not only like hard work but primarily like something you truly experience together.
A bottle of wine tastes different now
After this week, I realize even more how special wine is. Behind every bottle lie long days, hard work, and countless choices. From checking ripeness and removing damaged grapes to destemming, fermenting, and cleaning the last crates.
It is precisely the combination of nature, craftsmanship, and passion that ensures quality. And you can taste that.
This experience has made me even more curious about natural wine and the people who make these wines. If you ever get the chance to help with a grape harvest yourself, I would definitely do it. After that, you will never look at a bottle of wine the same way again.
