§3.1Winter pruningDecember to March
Pruning, Priced per Vine
We price pruning by the vine because that is how the work goes: one vine, one set of cuts, then the next. The exact rate inside each range is fixed once we have walked your parcel and seen the wood.
| Work | Charged | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Trellised vines, cordon or GuyotRate set after the parcel walk | Per vine | €0.38-0.48 |
| Bush vines, vasoSlower work, every head shaped by hand | Per vine | €0.55-0.75 |
| Vines planted before 1970Old wood is never two vines alike | Per parcel | After the walk |
| Pulling cut wood out of the rows | Per vine | €0.07 |
| Tying down Guyot canes | Per vine | €0.10 |
| Minimum job | Per booking | 2,000 vines |
| Charged on vines actually pruned, counted with a tally clicker row by row. | ||
A crew of 8 prunes about 2,400 trellised vines a day, or about 1,600 bush vines. So a parcel of 5,000 cordon vines is a short two days, and the same count in vaso is closer to three. March slots go on shorter notice, if we still have them.
Cordon royat, Guyot and vaso each take a different cut. What the crew actually does to each vine is set out in §2.1 of Methods.
§3.2Canopy workMay to July
Canopy Work, Priced by the Hour
Shoot thinning, desuckering, leaf pulling, lifting wires and topping by hand all go at one hourly rate. A shoot can take two seconds or twenty, so counting vines here would be unfair to someone.
| Booking | Made up of | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| One worker-hourAny canopy task, same rate | Per worker, per hour | €18.50 |
| Minimum, crew of 4Half day of 4 hours | 4 workers × 4 hours | €296 |
| Crew of 8, half day | 8 workers × 4 hours | €592 |
| Crew of 12, half day | 12 workers × 4 hours | €888 |
| Crews come in 4, 8 or 12. Summer field hours run 7:00 to 14:30, June to August. | ||
For a rough budget per hectare: shoot thinning usually takes 28 to 36 worker-hours, so between €518 and €666. Leaf pulling on the morning side takes 22 to 30, so between €407 and €555. The full hours for each task are in Table 3 of Methods.
§3.3Harvest pickingMid September to late October
Harvest, by the Kilo or by the Day
On trellis we pick by the kilo into your own 20 kg crates. On bush vines, or when you want a selective pass, we charge by the picker-day, because careful picking should never be paid against speed.
| Picking | Charged | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Trellised vines, into your 20 kg cratesA full crate comes to about €2.20 | Per kilo | €0.11 |
| Bush vines or selective pickingRot and raisined bunches sorted out in the row | Per picker, 8-hour day | €152 |
| Minimum jobAt day rates, €1,216 | One full day, 8 pickers | 1 day |
| DepositPaid when the week window is booked | Of the quoted job | 20% |
| We load your trailer at the row end and stop there. Hauling to the winery is yours. | ||
Cancel before 1 September and the full 20% is returned. If hail takes the crop, it is returned in full whatever the date. Nobody should pay for a harvest that the sky has already picked.
You book the week. The exact day is fixed 3 to 5 days ahead, once you have your own sugar readings, and you decide the picking order. At harvest we work Monday to Saturday and never on a Sunday. Up to 24 pickers come out, each crew under a lead with at least five seasons behind them; more on who comes out.
§3.4TravelCounted from Logroño
Travel From Logroño
Most of Rioja Alta and Alavesa sits inside 40 km of the van yard, and that travel costs you nothing. Past 40 km we charge for the road, per van, out and back.
| Distance from Logroño | Travel charge |
|---|---|
| Up to 40 kmParcel walk free here too | Included |
| 40 to 90 kmPer km, per van, counted there and back | €0.45 |
| Beyond 90 kmToo far to do the work well | Not taken |
| Each van carries 9. A crew of 4 or 8 fits in one van; a crew of 12 needs two. | |
Villages, Roughly
Approximate road distances from Logroño. Haro at 45 km is 90 km there and back, so €40.50 per van for each round trip; Alfaro comes to €67.50.
- Navarrete11 km
- Fuenmayor12 km
- Laguardia17 km
- Cenicero20 km
- Briones35 km
- Haro45 km
- Alfaro75 km
Not sure where your parcel falls? Tell us the village when you write from the contact page and we will say.
§3.5TermsAll work
Terms of Payment and Work
Short, and the same for a two-hectare family plot as for a bodega's twenty-five.
- Parcel walk
- Within 7 days of our first reply, free within 40 km. Our first reply comes within two working days.
- Written quote
- Within 3 working days of the walk, and valid for 30 days.
- Deposit
- None for pruning or canopy work. Harvest only, 20% at booking, refunded as set out in Note 3.3a.
- Invoicing
- Jobs longer than a week are invoiced every Friday. Shorter jobs get one invoice after the walk-off.
- Payment
- By bank transfer within 15 days of the invoice.
- Weather stops
- If the crew lead stops work for rain, frost below minus 4°C or afternoon heat over 36°C, the stopped hours are not charged.
- Counting
- We charge for vines actually pruned, counted with a tally clicker row by row, not the figure in the land registry. You sign the tally sheet at the walk-off.
- Days worked
- Monday to Friday, and Saturdays during harvest. Never Sunday. Closed 3 to 17 November and 24 December to 6 January.
§3.6Worked example
A Worked Example
How the numbers above turn into a quote, for a parcel of a common size.
2.2 ha of Tempranillo on Cordon, Near Navarrete
Illustration, not a real jobThe walk counts 7,900 vines on cordon royat in good order, so the rate lands mid-range at €0.42. Navarrete is 11 km out, well inside the free zone. A crew of 8 takes about three and a half days, which is under a week, so there is one invoice at the end and 15 days to pay it.