Angels in the Cellar

by Peter Hahn

Twenty years ago Peter Hahn had a breakdown while in the back of a London taxi. Emotionally exhausted by his corporate life, he no longer recognised himself, but knew he had to find a path out. Since then Peter has found his way to Le Clos de la Meslerie, a small ancient farm in the Loire Valley, where he grows and makes small-batch organic wines.

Angels in the Cellar invites us to spend a year in Peter's company among the vines, where he reflects on the land, his life, regenerative farming and the lives of the small group of people he works with. We join Peter through each season, pruning the wines and harvesting the grapes by hand, before we follow him to the wine cellar, where the alchemy begins - and the angels take charge.

An evocative, poetic account of a year spent working with nature, Angels in the Cellar is also a powerful repudiation of the global economy, its obsession with hyper-consumption and its impacts on the land and its ecosystems.

186 pages, Hardcover

Published April 14, 2025

Reviews

[John Grinstead · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peter Hahn quits the rat race to grow wine on a dilapidated French plot in the Loire Valley. Perhaps not the most original story line but this is a sensitively written account of a ‘Year in The Life’ that transcends the usual ‘rubbing up against idle tradesmen’ and ‘sparring with the unfriendly locals’ that we have seen before. Hahn works hard at integrating into the local wine growing community and at restoring wine production in a traditional way.

[Peter O'Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well written insight into the pace and view of life in the natural world of the Loire Valley, through the mind of a winegrower during each season of the year. Insightful and grounding