Today we battened down the hatches in anticipation of Hurricane Gordon (or at least his tail), as he tracked his way across the Atlantic after his Caribbean sojourn. By order of the local government all schools are closed, government offices closed, health centres closed (let’s just hope no one is injured), but we stop short of boarding up the windows of the Bodega.

At 7am I am out on the terrace of my home securing the sheeting on my garden furniture that I have stacked carefully in a sheltered corner. The wind is gathering pace as we brace ourselves for the onslaught, and at 8am the rain comes down – it looks as though the forecast of mayhem might be realised.

Then, an hour or so later it all suddenly disappears, almost as quickly as it didn’t really arrive! By 10am the wind has pretty much stopped, the sky clears, and by lunch time the sun is out. To be honest we experience more severe storms in winter, and so we are left scratching our heads and asking what all the fuss was about? The only beneficaries appear to be the children, enjoying an unexpected days holiday – FIESTA!

Meanwhile, back at the Bodega we are all very busy – some working on the big clean up, trying to rid us of the dreaded grape must that sticks to everything, and spreads everywhere on the soles of your shoes. Others are busy with the wine-making operations – seeding the tanks is all but finished, and many are happily fermenting under strict temperature control.

So far so good, but let’s see how the 2006 wine develops.