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Vynesco

Field crew for vineyards Logroño, La Rioja Est. 2008

Index
  1. 01How a Job Runs
  2. 02Methods
  3. 03Rates and Terms
  4. 04The Crew
  5. 05Contact

Write to hello@vynesco.com. Marta replies within two working days.

Report
01
Subject
How a job runs
Prepared by
Marta
Season
Nov to Oct

We prune, thin and pick your vines. Here is how a job runs.

A hand crew from Logroño, out on family parcels across Rioja Alta, Alavesa and Oriental since 2008. Five steps, start to finish.

§1How a job runs

From €0.38 a vine · €18.50 a worker-hour · €0.11 a kilo

Fig. 1, one Tempranillo vine after winter pruning Front elevation of a vine trained on a bilateral cordon. A tapering trunk rises 60 centimetres to a support wire, where two cordon arms run left and right. Six short spurs stand on the arms, each with two buds kept and a mustard cut mark at the top. Dotted lines on the left arm show last year's canes that were cut away. Callouts mark 1 trunk, 2 cordon arm, 3 spur, 4 two buds kept and 5 cut wood removed. A specimen tag tied to the trunk reads Specimen V-01, Tempranillo, Cordon royat, Fuenmayor, January. Fig. 1 · Front elevation 60 cm 100 cm Specimen V-01 Tempranillo Cordon royat Fuenmayor January 1 Trunk 2 Cordon arm 3 Spur 4 Two buds kept 5 Cut wood removed 0 25 50 cm
Fig. 1.One vine after winter pruning, two buds per spur. Drawn from a parcel near Fuenmayor.

Specimen V-01 · Tempranillo · Cordon royat · Fuenmayor · January

§1First email to last tally

How a Job Runs

Every job we take goes through the same five steps, in this order. Writing to us and the written quote are always free. The parcel walk is free within 40 km of Logroño; further out, mention the village in your first message and Marta will tell you in her reply.

  1. Step 1.1 · Any working day

    You Write to Us

    Write a short note to hello@vynesco.com with the village, the variety, the hectares or vine count, and how the vines are trained: bush, cordon or Guyot.

    Say which work you need and roughly when. Marta reads every message herself and answers within two working days. There is a short checklist on the contact page if you want one.

    Takes
    Ten minutes of yours
    Who
    You, then Marta
    You get
    A reply in two working days

  2. Step 1.2 · Within 7 days of our reply

    We Walk the Parcel

    A crew lead drives out, walks the rows with you and counts a sample row with a tally clicker. We look at the training, the age of the wood and the slope.

    The walk is free within 40 km of Logroño. Here is who comes out.

    Takes
    About an hour on site
    Who
    A lead with five seasons or more
    You get
    A vine count you watched us make

  3. Step 1.3 · Within 3 working days of the walk

    A Written Quote

    You get the price in writing: per vine for pruning, per worker-hour for canopy work, per kilo or per picker-day at harvest. It holds for 30 days.

    Every figure in it comes from our published rates and terms, so nothing should surprise you.

    Takes
    3 working days
    Who
    Marta
    You get
    A quote valid for 30 days

  4. Step 1.4 · The booked days, Monday to Friday

    The Crew on Your Parcel

    The vans pull up at 8:00. Almuerzo is at 10:30 at the row end, and we finish at 15:30. From June to August we start at 7:00 and stop at 14:30, ahead of the heat.

    On the first morning the crew lead walks the day's rows with you, so you agree the cut on real vines. This is what the crew does to each vine.

    Takes
    8 of us prune about 2,400 trellised vines a day
    Who
    A crew of 4, 8 or 12
    You get
    Weather stops left off the bill

  5. Step 1.5 · The last afternoon

    Walk-off and Invoice

    We walk the finished rows together and you sign the tally sheet, counted row by row with a clicker. That count is what we charge for, not the figure in the land registry.

    The invoice follows within 3 days and you pay by bank transfer within 15. Jobs longer than a week are invoiced every Friday instead.

    Takes
    One last walk
    Who
    You and the crew lead
    You get
    A signed tally and 15 days to pay

§2The year, in three parts

Three Kinds of Work

Hand work only, on your own vines, from the first frosty pruning mornings to the last crates in October.

  • Specimen P

    Dec to Mar

    Winter Pruning

    Bush vines, cordon royat and Guyot, two buds left on every spur, from €0.38 a vine on trellis.

    Methods §2.1

  • Specimen C

    May to Jul

    Canopy Work

    Shoot thinning, desuckering, leaves pulled on the morning side, wires lifted and topping by hand, at €18.50 a worker-hour.

    Methods §2.2

  • Specimen H

    Mid Sep to late Oct

    Harvest Picking

    Into your 20 kg crates, rot sorted out in the row, loaded onto your trailer at the row end. €0.11 a kilo on trellis.

    Methods §2.3

We don't spray, drive tractors, plant, or haul grapes to the winery. Everything else we decline, with the reasons, is in Methods §2.4.

§3Every year

When to Book

The busy weeks fill early, and they fill in the order people write. These are the dates we plan the crew around.

Table 1.Booking deadlines, every year
Work Book by For Note
Winter pruning 30 November December to February starts March slots on shorter notice if we have themMinimum 2,000 vines
Canopy work 15 April May to July Minimum half a day with 4 workers€296 at the least
Harvest 31 JulyA week window Mid September to late October Exact day fixed 3 to 5 days ahead, from your sugar readingsMinimum one day with 8 pickers
Closed 3 to 17 Novand 24 Dec to 6 Jan No field work, no replies Never on Sundays, harvest included

A slot is yours once it is booked in writing. Pruning and canopy work need no deposit. A harvest window takes 20% up front, refunded in full if you cancel before 1 September or if hail takes the crop.

Writing in November? Read Marta's closure note before you wonder why nobody has answered.