At the heart of how we spend our time now is preparation. It is the season of the year for preparation (one prepares wines for bottling, one prepares vineyards, equipment, staff for harvest)—but it is also the season for preparation in the life of the Project. For years, we have proceeded with little forethought, propelled by excitement, enthusiasm. We have not looked ahead, and if at all, not far. This past winter and spring have been marked by attention, discipline, and, above all, preparation. It is all still new.

There is a good reason for these new habits: the Scholium Project now has a future. Previously, it was entirely provisional. It might or might not exist in a month or two; in early winter, it was still entirely possible that we might not make wine the following fall.

Now I have the sense that we have created something—something still quite small, and still developing, still youthful and not yet formed. But something with parts that deserve to stay together, with colleagues whose work is just beginning, with lessons still to learn, and some pleasure still to share. In order to make sure that all this occurs, we must now prepare for the future—with care and forethought, not certainty—and not simply be washed over by it.