Reporting live from our self imposed sabbatical aka semi vacation aka brief hiatus from most things pop-up related. Anthony has technically decided to make his a working vacation and has found himself in the South of France, near the Spanish border, functioning as the in-house cook for a group of winemakers during harvest (more on this later in a future newsletter).
Harvest is the very short, few month period, typically some time from August- October, when natural winemakers pick and process the vast majority of their grapes for the upcoming year. The stakes are incredibly high, as this is really what they have spent all year gearing towards. Depending on the size of the operation, groups of professionals will be hired as seasonal workers to help toil the land. For smaller vineyards, this is typically a family/friends/eager young foreigners (Anthony), all hands on deck kind of deal. As the work is so physically demanding, and the French love a leisurely lunch break, it is essential to have an appointed cook. It has been on Anthony’s bucket list for years now.