Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Vilafonte was represented at the Aspen 2008 Food & Wine Festival this year. A seminar on the cutting edge of South African Icon wines was presented. Pictured here are the presenters of the seminar attended by over 200 people. From left to right in the lower photograph. Rory Callahan, Ken Forrester, Mike Ratcliffe & George Miliotes. The seminar was a huge success with all members of the audience enjoying the fine wines presented. The Vilafonte Series C 2004 was a particular favourite and was tasting amazing on 
the day.
the day. In addition to this, the Series M was being shown at the main tent of the Aspen Food and Wine Show and was tasted by hundreds of people, eager to participate in the small presence by South African wineries.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Vilafonte in Hawaii
It has been an action-packed couple of days as I touched down in Honolulu for a 4 day visit to the
beautiful friendly islands. My schedule has been jammed with Warwick and Vilafonte promotional activities extending across the islands of Oahu and Maui. Our wines are represented in Hawaii by the 2nd biggest distributor in the islands called 'BETTER BRANDS" and I managed to get 45 minutes in front of all of them to introduce the wines and to do a mini-presentation on South African wines.
beautiful friendly islands. My schedule has been jammed with Warwick and Vilafonte promotional activities extending across the islands of Oahu and Maui. Our wines are represented in Hawaii by the 2nd biggest distributor in the islands called 'BETTER BRANDS" and I managed to get 45 minutes in front of all of them to introduce the wines and to do a mini-presentation on South African wines. I also visited a number of restaurants, presented 
2 wine dinners and met a whole bunch of really friendly people. All in all, it has been an eye-opener and definitely shows that this is a great market - as yet untouched by South African wines. This is the vacation capital of America!
2 wine dinners and met a whole bunch of really friendly people. All in all, it has been an eye-opener and definitely shows that this is a great market - as yet untouched by South African wines. This is the vacation capital of America!Friday, May 23, 2008
Monday, May 19, 2008
2008 Harvest report
Here are some in-depth comments from Phil, Zelma and myself on the 2008 vintage:
• The winter was above normal rainfall in amount and a long season with good rainfall throughout the season. We had early rains in the fall following the 2007 vintage and good steady rains through the season to result in a high annual total
• Early in the growing season we saw pressure from downy mildew and growers were kept on their toes with the continuing rains and mild weather of spring
• The summer temperatures were normal with their rhythm of warming and then cooling as the South Easterly breezes brought in the cooler temps.
• One uniqueness of the season was that the night temperatures were somewhat warmer than average and the relative humidity was higher. This combination lead to a more “continental” type of climate associated with the centre of Europe and the Bordeaux areas
• The season set up for the disease pressure mentioned above but also for a season with less extreme stresses on the vines with respect to temperature and drought.
• Ripeness did come with lower brix levels this season as a combination of the season comments above as well as some changes in management geared to the season.
• The ripening months of January and February were both about twice as rainy as recent history. The benefits were reduced stress on the vines and an evenness of ripening for the red grapes of Vilafonte. There was some disease pressure on fruit in different areas but Vilafonte was disease-free due to the location of the vineyard, our production of red fruit only and fresh breezes that prevail at the site. We saw the rains as freshening the vines and the relief of some of the stresses of late season and soils that are naturally managed toward the dry side
• January started mild with fewer late-January heat spikes than January of 2007
• Harvest began about 14 days later than last year – just as forecast from the flowering dates. The phenology cycle of the vines is quite regular and predictable as we build even more records with 2008 vintage being our 10th year after planting the majority of the vineyards in 1998
• Mid-February saw the beginning of the vintage harvesting Malbec and Merlot.
• We had temperature spikes on the normal rhythm of warming and then cooling as the sea breezes were pulled in. Night temperatures were warm and more humid than recent vintages. While this leads humans to consider this a warm to hot season the vines were loving the reduced stresses that temperature and relative humidity extremes can bring to the vines
• Berry size was small due in part to the added drainage we have at Vilafonte which allows us to get the free-draining excess moisture of the spring out of the soils as the vines begin to grow. Sub-surface drainage is not the usual for most South African vineyards.
• The vines woke up in the spring with some water deficits to lead to the smaller berries and the concentration of fruit characters followed on this reduced berry size. Small berries lead to intensity of fruit but of course the crop level is lower
• Ripening was moderate and on a very predictable rate that gave us time to achieve ripeness without bursts of high sugars
• Acidity was very similar to past seasons with natural acid levels that allowed for no additions at
the winery and thus the natural balance of the wines is showing very nicely
• Quality: Superb; The best yet. Definitely more finesse in wines than other years. We achieved optimal tannin ripeness in all varietals that led to soft and elegant wines, but there is still the underlying intense fruit core of warmer years.
• Varietals: Malbec - extremely deep and concentrated, but still elegant in structure; Cab franc - More dark fruit than floral characters, elegant, fine and cool. Cab S - deep dark and long; Perfect structures this year. Merlot - Creamy, deep and long. Everything performed wonderfully.
• The winter was above normal rainfall in amount and a long season with good rainfall throughout the season. We had early rains in the fall following the 2007 vintage and good steady rains through the season to result in a high annual total• Early in the growing season we saw pressure from downy mildew and growers were kept on their toes with the continuing rains and mild weather of spring
• The summer temperatures were normal with their rhythm of warming and then cooling as the South Easterly breezes brought in the cooler temps.
• One uniqueness of the season was that the night temperatures were somewhat warmer than average and the relative humidity was higher. This combination lead to a more “continental” type of climate associated with the centre of Europe and the Bordeaux areas
• The season set up for the disease pressure mentioned above but also for a season with less extreme stresses on the vines with respect to temperature and drought.
• Ripeness did come with lower brix levels this season as a combination of the season comments above as well as some changes in management geared to the season.
• The ripening months of January and February were both about twice as rainy as recent history. The benefits were reduced stress on the vines and an evenness of ripening for the red grapes of Vilafonte. There was some disease pressure on fruit in different areas but Vilafonte was disease-free due to the location of the vineyard, our production of red fruit only and fresh breezes that prevail at the site. We saw the rains as freshening the vines and the relief of some of the stresses of late season and soils that are naturally managed toward the dry side
• January started mild with fewer late-January heat spikes than January of 2007• Harvest began about 14 days later than last year – just as forecast from the flowering dates. The phenology cycle of the vines is quite regular and predictable as we build even more records with 2008 vintage being our 10th year after planting the majority of the vineyards in 1998
• Mid-February saw the beginning of the vintage harvesting Malbec and Merlot.
• We had temperature spikes on the normal rhythm of warming and then cooling as the sea breezes were pulled in. Night temperatures were warm and more humid than recent vintages. While this leads humans to consider this a warm to hot season the vines were loving the reduced stresses that temperature and relative humidity extremes can bring to the vines
• Berry size was small due in part to the added drainage we have at Vilafonte which allows us to get the free-draining excess moisture of the spring out of the soils as the vines begin to grow. Sub-surface drainage is not the usual for most South African vineyards.
• The vines woke up in the spring with some water deficits to lead to the smaller berries and the concentration of fruit characters followed on this reduced berry size. Small berries lead to intensity of fruit but of course the crop level is lower
• Ripening was moderate and on a very predictable rate that gave us time to achieve ripeness without bursts of high sugars
• Acidity was very similar to past seasons with natural acid levels that allowed for no additions at
the winery and thus the natural balance of the wines is showing very nicely• Quality: Superb; The best yet. Definitely more finesse in wines than other years. We achieved optimal tannin ripeness in all varietals that led to soft and elegant wines, but there is still the underlying intense fruit core of warmer years.
• Varietals: Malbec - extremely deep and concentrated, but still elegant in structure; Cab franc - More dark fruit than floral characters, elegant, fine and cool. Cab S - deep dark and long; Perfect structures this year. Merlot - Creamy, deep and long. Everything performed wonderfully.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Zelma's Harvest Observations 2008
Vilafonte, 2008
2008 will produce classic wines. And the personality and chemistry of our grapes has been quite distinct from 2007.
First a word about the weather. 2008 has been distinguished by a later bloom and cooler growing
season, resulting in a later harvest for Vilafonte. Feb 15 was our first harvest day; the latest ever, but it was a smooth and relatively compact season; finishing on March 7.
During the harvest we saw the normal warm-sunny/cool-cloudy cycles; with light rain punctuating a few of them. For our Bordeaux varieties, with their open clusters, light crop and open canopy, the rain caused no trouble, indeed slowed rate of sugar increase and allowed continued ripening of flavors and tannins.
As a result, we were able to harvest ripe grapes at lower average sugars; with ripe, firm well flavored grapes coming off vines that looked quite “happy” – good green color and decent but not high vigor. And, as the grapes differed, so did fermentations. We noted a bit lighter color and higher tannins in the grapes, so were careful to get complete color extraction, and, after that, to manage the tannin extraction gently, to be sure we did not “over extract”, which can lead to harshness. A smaller than normal harvest allowed us to have excellent skin to juice ratios in the fermenter; perfect for getting “the goodies” (color, aroma, flavor, texture) from the grapes.
Fermentations went well this year, often finishing in barrels.
Overall, we estimate that our wines will be classic in structure; and marked with finesse, fine tannins, and fruit concentration, in the 2008 vintage.
Zelma Long
Winemaking Partner, Vilafonte
March 10, 2008
2008 will produce classic wines. And the personality and chemistry of our grapes has been quite distinct from 2007.
First a word about the weather. 2008 has been distinguished by a later bloom and cooler growing
season, resulting in a later harvest for Vilafonte. Feb 15 was our first harvest day; the latest ever, but it was a smooth and relatively compact season; finishing on March 7.During the harvest we saw the normal warm-sunny/cool-cloudy cycles; with light rain punctuating a few of them. For our Bordeaux varieties, with their open clusters, light crop and open canopy, the rain caused no trouble, indeed slowed rate of sugar increase and allowed continued ripening of flavors and tannins.
As a result, we were able to harvest ripe grapes at lower average sugars; with ripe, firm well flavored grapes coming off vines that looked quite “happy” – good green color and decent but not high vigor. And, as the grapes differed, so did fermentations. We noted a bit lighter color and higher tannins in the grapes, so were careful to get complete color extraction, and, after that, to manage the tannin extraction gently, to be sure we did not “over extract”, which can lead to harshness. A smaller than normal harvest allowed us to have excellent skin to juice ratios in the fermenter; perfect for getting “the goodies” (color, aroma, flavor, texture) from the grapes.
Fermentations went well this year, often finishing in barrels.
Overall, we estimate that our wines will be classic in structure; and marked with finesse, fine tannins, and fruit concentration, in the 2008 vintage.
Zelma Long
Winemaking Partner, Vilafonte
March 10, 2008
Friday, March 07, 2008
Zelma explains Berry sorting
We've shown you some clips on berry sorting - here Zelma Long gives us an explanation of why we are so meticulous about it and why it's so important:
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)