More information has come to my attention about processing the grapes during vendange.
Once the grapes have been pressed, two parts remain: the "moût" which is the soft part used to make the wine, and the "marc" which are the solids such as skins, pips and stalks. The marc* is moved by conveyor belt from the "Cave Coopérative" to waiting trailers. It is then transported to the local distilleries where it is made into consumable alcohol such as "eau de vie" or used to boost the alcohol content in the making of other liquor, such as "muscat", for which Karl has definitely developed a taste.
* Pronunciation: the c in marc is silent, so you say mar.
It is then distilled a second time to make industrial alcohol, perhaps the rubbing alcohol that you use to soothe your aching back.
Finally, it is returned to the "Cave" where it is ploughed into the land. This residue is considered an excellent fertilizer. Should the "Cave" not give the marc to the distilleries, an added tax is applied. All distilleries are state owned.
I have it on good authority, but cannot substantiate, that when the Germans occupied France during WWII, they built distilleries to make aviation or rocket fuel from the grape waste. We know for sure that the V-2 Rocket, a liquid-propellant rocket developed by Wernher von Braun, burnt ethynol as its rocket fuel, what we commonly refer to as alcohol. You can identify these distilleries by the chimneys with a turret about one-third of the way up. If this is not true, it sure sounds like a good story!
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