A team of harvesters pick the bunches collecting them in flat wooden baskets.

The baskets are then emptied in the metal containers carried on the backs of fellow pickers.

The grape bunches are first sorted by hand on tables specially designed for Haut-Brion. Unripe grapes and foliage are eliminated.

Choosing the best time to start the harvest is both a science and an art. In theory, the harvest should start 110 days after the blossoming. In practice the decision is left to the director, who must weigh many factors including climatic parameters, potential problems that threaten the vines, the maturity of the grapes, and various other concerns.