DAY of the GRAPE....

 “Wine had to be grapes first. Diamonds had to be rocks first. Butterflies had to be caterpillars first. Rainbows had to be storms first.”― Matshona Dhliwayo

 The dawned bright and early.  Very early early early........

 Fall in the crisp morning, Grapes underfoot, overhead

 Plopped into bags, sticky with their juices.

 Wasps drunk on grape juice , zooming from bag to bag, grapes to grapes. 

 Stripping and stemming pile after pile.

 Till the arbour was ruined of its former glory.

 “Our feet are grape-squashed in memories..."
                                            ― Sanober Khan, A touch, a tear, a tempest

 And the grapes trundled off to Willow Point Wines to meet their fate.

 Pounds and pounds of grapes.... A few wasps joined us....

 Into the Squisher they went. The Crusher. The Destemmer......

 But you have to watch your hands as the wheel turns, dropping the grapes through.

 It's all turned to mush....

 Then  scooped into the massive juicer.

 What's leftover are the peelings, some stems, a few dead insects and it's saved to go to the local farms to feed pigs.

 Lastly, the juice is poured into carboys, sugar and yeast and other things added. And so it sits.......

We tasted the juice. tart, bright, fresh. In the spring it will be wine. Perfect for giving away as gifts.

Photographs 2019