Nicolas Prevost is a blacksmith from the south of France hoping to make his own wine in the hills of Powys.

Situated in Trallong, Nicolas has planted 300 vines by hand in his vineyard, Le Prevost Vineyard.

He has lived in Powys for 20 years after being part of a travel group that visited Sennybridge when he was 20 years old.

Nicolas continues his metal construction work in the week and works on the vineyard on weekends and weekday evenings.

Nicolas stresses that this is an attempt to make wine and not a guarantee, he said: “If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work.”

He is aiming to make red wine and a variety of white wine that hasn’t been made in Britain.

This is Nicolas’ first attempt of making wine, after deciding to learn how to run a vineyard during lockdown.

Nicolas said: “I did a course during the famous Covid winter. It was a vineyard growing course online, so I started from there but now you just sort of learn on the job.”

Nicolas is now part of a forum of vineyard growers who share tips and answer each other’s questions.

He told the Brecon & Radnor Express of his desire to open up a vineyard and what made him want to do it.

“I think I need to have a go at it. I’m French, I love wine,” he said.

“I don’t drink a lot of it, less than the average in the UK to be honest. But, I think when you get to a certain age, things change in life and you’ve got to do what you want in life and go for your dreams.”

Originally the plan was for Nicolas to make wine to drink but he is now hoping to sell it once it is made in a winery.

Nicolas believes that Le Prevost Vineyard could be the highest vineyard in the United Kingdom at 260 metres above sea level, which provides great views in summer.

He said: “I do keep myself to myself, in summer it’s nice after work to stop in Brecon, get a pizza, work into the evening. When you get older, it’s just little things like that, you enjoy more. There are beautiful views too of Pen y Fan, Black Mountains and you can see Sugar Loaf in the distance, as well as the Usk Valley, it’s nice.”

He is hoping to have his first bottle of by autumn 2024.

“It’s weather dependant,” said Nicolas. “You’ve got to have a dry-ish spring, a dry-ish autumn, a bit of rain in the summer is okay.

“The autumn is very important because this is when your fruit matures and is ready to harvest and if it rains during harvest then you’ve got to wait and wait.”

Nicolas says in the future he would like to open the vineyard to visitors to come and have a look around, sit down and try some wine in the summer. As a blacksmith he would construct some ornaments for visitors to enjoy. He also has a variety of plants and berries growing in the vineyard.

If you are interested in Le Prevost Vineyard, you can find their Instagram page @leprevostvineyardtrallong, or contact Nicolas by email, [email protected].