Resting Upon the Lees

The production of wine has come a long ways since the early days when people would use their feet to crush the juice out of the grapes. However, there is one part of that ancient process that continues to apply as metaphor for living today. This most notable part is during the fermentation process known as resting upon the lees.

After the fruit was crushed and the juice poured out, the new wine was placed into large jars where it would begin the fermentation process. Although the wine was strained when put into the jars, there would continue to be small particles within the liquid which would slowly fall to the bottom of the container. These small particles were considered the “lees”. Once the wine had settled for some time, the winemaker would pour it into another large jar. The wine would then settle again. This process was repeated several times until the wine was ready for serving.

A person might ask, “Why was the wine poured out time, after time, after time?” The reason is because of the lees. If the wine was allowed to settle for too long a period the lees that helped in fermentation would begin to rot the wine above, and the entire vat would be ruined. It was imperative that the wine be poured out or the wine would begin to stink. The winemaker knew exactly when the pouring process was to be continued lest his precious wine putrefy.

The next time the scent of rottenness is settling within a person's life, or their vision has blurred, or their direction is upset or diverted, it might be that they are either settling upon their lees or they are readying for a pouring out once again. Either way, the winemaker is attentive, and although they might scream and complain during the pouring out, there is a refinement process occurring in the mind of the winemaker.

Until tomorrow...Why Say More?