ADOPT A GRAPE. Something we of course all aspire to: making our own wine. Barefooted in a bucket of grapes and a few months later: drinking the results of the effort. But however way you put it, it is still muddling on in the shed or in the attic. I know someone who once had a DIY home brewing kit under his bed for half a year in which things were simmering and ripening away. The result was ... interesting.

But options are available for the urban wine lover who longs for a physical relationship with the vines. Adopt a vine, for example. A few years ago the Dutch Helena de Jong took over a vineyard in Bergerac, just east of Bordeaux where she now produces red wines under the label Domaine Le Clos du Mege. The 2005 wine smells a bit of cherries and has a robust taste at first, which turns into a fresh-soury taste immediately after. A separate field is designed for young vines that can be leased. With a minimum of twelve sticks you suddenly find yourself to be a wine grower. De Jong: " I have 75 leaseholders, including Parisians. "

Personal involvement is allowed to some extent, so a smart grape adopter organizes a holiday in the Dordogne during the pruning, weeding or harvesting season. Of course you get wine in return, a bit similar to the eggs you receive in the project ‘Adopt a Chicken.’ The ‘long distance wine grower’ receives two bottles each year per vine. The only thing still lacking is the webcam, a feature incorporated in the Adopt a chicken scheme. Wouldn’t it be great to see how the vines are doing when you turn on the computer each morning? Domaine Le Clos du Mège AC Bergerac 2005  €7.

The original article in Dutch was published on November 3, 2007 by journalist Remke de Lange of Trouw. For more wine articles: www.remkedelange.nl. This article is copyrighted.