Loire 2020: The Harvest
The early start to the growing season, in combination with the warm weather through the summer months, resulted in a remarkably early harvest in 2020. The Loire Valley has enjoyed other early harvests in recent years, including 2018 and 2019, although the precocity of these other vintages was largely down to hot summer weather and a shortened maturation period. In 2020, however, it was largely the result of the premature budbreak followed by warm and dry (but not extreme) summer weather.
Whatever the reason, though, harvests beginning in August are increasingly common in the region, which means the long-established notion that August is a good month for a vigneron to go on holiday is clearly no longer true. To do so runs the risk of having to return early to begin picking.
The harvest was also naturally complicated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Much of the work that goes on during spring and summer can be accomplished in-house, by the vigneron and their family, usually with the assistance of a small number of permanent employees. In these situations it is possible to maintain safe working practices such as social distancing. The harvest requires a much greater number of people though, as saisonniers (seasonal workers) are drafted in to complete the picking in time. These workers might camp on site, typically eat together, share communal facilities, and obviously work together in the vines, all of which brought new challenges in 2020.
Masks and gloves (as pictured) were obviously de rigueur, and social distancing was adhered to where possibly. On some domaines workers were divided into two teams who worked and ate separately; that way, if one person tested positive for Covid-19, at least only half the pickers would be forced into self-isolation, and some sort of harvest could continue. Even if this were not the case other measures could be taken, with lunches split into shifts to reduce the number of people at the table, with designated seating, and so on. Happily, I am not aware of any domaines where harvest was disrupted by Covid-19 infection.
