Winter is here!!!

YES, it is cold, the North-West is blowing and the cold fronts keep coming! I know it is actually almost mid winter, but the rain came a bit later than expected. Not so nice to work in the vineyards, but good for the field and the vines. A beautiful winters day in Darling. Just a bit of snow visible on the mountains towards Tulbagh.

What's happening

So the purpose of this blog was to show you (the readers) what we do in the vineyards. I kinda drifted away from that... So I'm back on track!

We are currently just busy with the first phase of winter pruning. We are giving form to the vines and determining the yield to some extent of 2012. Today it is cold (11⁰C), the North West wind is pumping at about 27km/h, and it is raining. This morning 15mm of rain fell in less than an hour. It is not ideal, but at least we are getting some rain. So how does things look in the vineyards now? Well, like this

Winter Panoramics

I am a big fan of panoramic photos. There are just something intriguing about them. I would like to get a wide angle lens one day, but for now the panoramic software will have to do. Here is just three shots of the vineyards. The quality isn't what the originals was, but I have to shrink them to upload them, but I still think it is an awesome way to portray vineyards. Maybe I should do so more often..

(Please click on the images to enlarge)

To the left, Ruby Cabernet, To the right, Shiraz

Pinotage

Ruby Cabernet

Noble and sweets

Last night was another wonderful Darling Wine Tasting, hosted by our white wine maker - Welma Visser, at Darling Cellars. The header of this post says it all - it was sweet. (no pun intended) Welma had in her arsenal an array of wonderful wines, from all across the globe.

The tasting started off by the fireplace, where everyone was welcomed with a glass of Darling Cellars MCC Brut. It was cold, so the fire was very nice (except for Clement - he is from Switzerland and doesn't feel our South African cold).

After the pre-drinks we went in and the tasting started.

This was a blind tasting, but I will just name the wine tasted in order.

1. Noble Late Harvest - Heggies, Australia (2006)
2. Noble Late Harvest - Fleur de Cap, South Africa (2006)
3. Noble Late Harvest - Chateau Guiraud Sauternes, France (2006)
4. Noble Late Harvest - Darling Cellars, South Africa (2009)
5. Straw Wine - Tierhoek, South Africa (2006)
6. Straw Wine - Bindella Dolce Sinfonia, Italy (2006)
7. Straw Wine - Mullineux, South Africa (2010)
8. Frozen Eiswein - Yarden, Israel (2005)
9. Eiswein - Roll, Germany (2004)

Darling Wines

Please read the following blogpost by Christian Eedes.

Darling Cellars Lime Kilns 2010

World Environment Day

June 5th is World Environment day. The theme for this year is "Forests: Nature at our service".

We at Darling Cellars are very passionate about preserving our environment. Being part of BWI makes us constantly aware of the struggling environment, and what we can and must do to help save and preserve it.

I'm not going to babble on about being green - you all know the importance of saving our earth and the dismal state it is currently in, but I do want you to reconsider your lifestyle and habits.

If you want to know what World Environment day is about, please check out this link - WED

I'm quoting the following facts for your convenience, but here is the link anyway - Link

Forest Facts

Saving forests requires a change in lifestyle

Pruning Bush Vine Grapes

In this post I will try to explain the process of pruning bush vines. It is very different from trellised vines, but the principle stays the same.

Firstly, pruning commences when the vines go into dormancy, which is during winter. The plant sheds its leaves and the processes in the plant came to a halt.

Before you start cutting away at a vine, there are some aspects to keep in mind.

Your first consideration must be the purpose of the specific block of grapes. Is this a bulk block, a reserve, a premium or ultra-premium block?

Secondly you must let the vine tell you how to prune it. It will show this through the vigor. A very vigorous vine is not in balance. This is your job to always maintain balance in a vine. Vigorous vines can be brought into balance through putting more bearers on. It is important to spread the bearers around the vine and not all to one side.

Thirdly when pruning you should consider the leaf to fruit ratio. This is actually controlled more during suckering, but the initial phase starts during pruning.

Okay, now to the practical part.

Let’s start off with first year plants.

(Pictures taken from "Wingerdbou in Suid-Afrika", page 203)

During the first winter pruning (B.) all the shoots are cut away, except the strongest one that is upright. This shoot is cut back to two buds. (can be three buds if the shoot is strong) Cutting back so drastically in the first year ensures that more growth goes into less shoots the following year, resulting in stronger arms and quicker development.

The vine should not ripen any fruit in the first two years. Any fruit should be cut off at an early stage. For the first three years we focus on vine development and not on production.