TRADITIONAL WINE-MAKING IN CINQUE TERRE

One morning in September, during a trip to Europe, I was out walking along some of the trails that precariously wind across the steeped terraces of Cinque Terre. It was grape picking season and many people were out working in the vineyards. Due to the terrain, almost all of the harvest is still done traditionally – workers hike into the vineyards, collect the grapes and then carry them out by hand. Some of the bigger vineyards have a ‘trenino’ / a small monorail, which to the average passerby seems much more like an unsettlingly hazardous rollercoaster, that they use to cart the grapes up to the trails from deep within the terraced vineyards. It is incredibly strenuous work, as you can imagine. The first few photos of the series were captured wandering along the hiking trails in Cinque Terre.

When I arrived back to my accomodation, I noticed people unpacking baskets and tubs of grapes from the boot of a car. I was curious so I stopped to see what they were doing. They were taking them into a little room under a house, a ‘cantina’ to process them and make them into wine. They had collected them from their land in the same area that I had been walking in earlier on in the day.

The people seemed very friendly and when I gestured that I would like to take photos, they let me. I went into the cantina with them and snapped away throughout the process.

They didn’t speak English and I didn’t speak Italian but we were able to communicate through hand movements and random words that sound similar in English and Italian. They explained that they had picked the grapes earlier that day from their land in Cinque Terre and that this is where they turn them into wine.

Mario, in the bandana, was helping his father, Carlo to make the wine. Mario’s uncle also popped in to give a helping hand and to check in on how they were going. Mario works as a police officer and explained that he doesn’t actually even drink wine. His father just enjoys the whole process and making it so much that every year he helps him to make it. As you can see, it is very physical work so he can’t really do it on his own.

They use a manual machine that needs to be turned by hand to crush the grapes, ready to go into the wine barrel. The grapes are then poured into the wine barrel and left to ferment. Carlo explains that during the fermentation process, the temperature of the room is incredibly important and he shows me how they keep an eye on it. He then pours me a glass of wine to taste. It is like nothing I have every tasted before. It has very particular taste that I can’t even begin to describe and it is delicious.

Unfortunately Mario’s uncle passed away a few years ago and Carlo passed away very recently. This remains one of my favourite photographic series and I am so happy that I was able to show these to Carlo while he was still here and that his family will now have these to keep as a memory forever.