The last two weeks has been a roller coaster ride! The Old Vines Project is picking up great momentum, especially after the Rootstock session held at Muratie in Stellenbosch on Thursday evening. A suggestion from a young winemaker that South Africa has between 40 and 80 hectares of vineyards older than 35 years, where in fact we have more than 2600 hectares of old vines, reassured me that this is a cause worth fighting for and I can’t wait for the new website on old vines to go live! But, patience is a virtue…
Yesterday was an absolute stunner of a day. I was privileged to visit a wine and fruit farm in Elgin Valley. The rolling hills and proximity to the ocean makes for an unique terroir producing unique wines. The different aspects that are at your disposal due to the rolling hills are just astounding. Every 100 meters or so you have a different slope. A viticultural paradise. I can’t wait to do a terrain study on the farm and see how the different varieties were planted and how this affects the wine styles. Will do this next week.
Furthermore the soils were something I have not come across in the areas that I’ve worked before, but how can you not be intrigued by this…
