la Collina's Little Hillside Vineyard, Groundbreaking

Amelia puts Little Hillside vines to bed for the winter

Chicken roasting on a spit

Susan and Willie take a break at the top of Little Hillside

The Sun says "Good morning!"

Giant toad saved by Jim McCullough

Little Hillside, toward the end of winter #2

Susan meets with La Stoppa Winery's Elena Pantaleoni in the Trebbiola Valley, Emilia Romagna, Italy

Willie does his vineyard snow dance.

Young vines, Willie, and swing

Lunch for Little Hillside volunteers

Jeff Tracy's draft ponies — they'll pull a sickle bar mower between the rows of Big Hillside Vineyard

Decisions.

Pruning: I suppose it gets easier. I suppose they like it. But man, at first it's hard to snip off those hard-earned branches. You choose carefully, and for different outcomes: beauty, building hardwood, producing fruit, long-term, short-term. You get lost in the story of a single vine. Then you look up and see 649 others. "Do me!" "Do ME!" " No, me!"

A few years ago, Doug asked students from a local vocational school's welding class to build this beautiful brulette. It's a bit heavy to roll between the vines, but it works just fine and does double duty for grilling.