Living and working as a gourmet cycling guide in Burgundy for the past four years, I have had the good fortune to sample some of the very best wines the region has to offer.

Enjoyed in restaurants, homes and wine-bars the world over, anyone who enjoys fine wine knows about the magical nuanced wines that Burgundy produces. But what of the work that goes into the wine? While touring Burgundy winemakers are happy to open their doors and cellars to the public to educate visitors on their trade, but what of the men and women who work in the fields day after day?

Having worked two harvests in 2011 and 2012 I have some experience of the back-breaking labour that goes on at this heady climax of the wine growing year, but what do the countless locals do who work in the vines for the rest of the year?

In an attempt to learn more about, Burgundy, her people and the greatest wines on earth, each month this year I will joining my neighbours Jean Pierre and Natalie in the vines for a morning of work. Taking my camera along, I hope to capture through a series of photographs the daily dedication, expertise and hard work that goes into the wine we enjoy.

In January the previous season vine growth is cut away from the vines and burned in make shift braziers. In freezing temperatures and wet conditions this work goes on late into the month filling the air with a sweet scent. These images were taken from a small parcel of land called Les Carrière (the quarry) just above Auxey-Duresses.