Vendange – Tales of monsieur petit pois – écossais!
Vendange is the French word for harvesting wine – these short stories are ‘grape
pickers stories.
Very few people are fortunate enough to be mentored in fine wine. I was lucky and the
instruction I received over many French lunches and dinners opened my eyes to the
complexities of fine wine and how the choice of the right wine for a particular dish
elevates the experience from mere grazing to hedonistic delights.
I wanted to learn more about wine and decided to go and make the vendange in whit is
arguably one of the finest areas of wine in the world – the Haut Médoc – north of
Bordeaux. What started as a ‘one off’ visit turned into an annual pilgrimage covering
seven years during which I found out everything I wanted to about the subject.
Vendange isn’t though a dry book about the wine making process – more a collection of
anecdotes gathered in my pannier along the way. It started in the autumn of 1979 and
finished in 1986 and during that time, the wine industry changed forever. I was lucky
enough to witness the changes.
What some reviewers say:-
“Reading these stories brightened by life and lifted my spirit” Barbara Golden
“At first, I wasn’t sure what to expect. It’s very hard to find good short stories
but I’m glad I found this. Terrific!” John Asgard
“I’ll never drink the same again!!!” Brian C. Smith
