I took this shot in the premier cru vineyards of Burgundy (or Bourgogne, in French) not far outside of Beaune near Pommard. It’s a beautiful and historic part of the world, and, of course, the wines are superb. There’s something about this stone house in the midst of rows and rows of grape vines on a sunny spring morning that really captures what I liked about the spirit of the place. The locals are very protective of their traditions not just with their wine but also their homes. The reason that there are no grapes on the vines is that it’s very early in the season, April, when the vines have been trimmed back to their bases, some of which can be over a century old. Through the summer they grow with harvesting in October. So a few months after this shot was taken the field would have been covered in leafy vines with clumps of grapes.
