KWV's viticultural team in Paarl

Completing a study to find out its ‘carbon footprint’ in 2008, KWV then decided to explore several strategies to reduce this ‘footprint’.

In an effort to reduce future carbon emissions, our viticultural team, Unathi Mantshongo and Cobus van Graan, headed out to the Mbekweni township in Paarl to plant 500 trees.

As part of this initiative KWV aims to plant 2670 indigenous trees and fruit trees in four of Mbekweni’s low-cost housing wards. The aim is to off-set more than 5% of its carbon emissions over the next 15 years.

KWV decided to focus its efforts on the Paarl community as it provides most of our natural resources.

The tree planting project is spearheaded by KWV’s viticultural team in partnership with the award-winning NGO, Food & Trees for Africa.

The first 500 trees, comprising Karee Trees, White Stinkwood Trees, African Olive Trees, Water Berry Trees and the Cape Holly Trees were planted in July, with the rest to follow during the year.

KWV’s chief winemaker Richard Rowe expressed his gratitude to the community for their support and looks forward to seeing the trees and the community grow.

Some might think that blended wines are simply wines made up of different leftovers in the cellar. This is not the case at all. Blending wine is an art (with a healthy dose of science included in the mix). Johann Fourie, KWV senior winemaker explains:

Interviewer: What is meant by the art of blending wines?

Johann: A blend is made by combining the qualities of different wines. It’s a complicated process as it requires a lot of skill, patience and creativity (as well as the knowledge of the qualities of different cultivars and how they mix). As a winemaker you go on a journey and you can push yourself to your sensory limit. Blending wines is also a lengthy procedure as you play around until you find the perfect balance.

You have to apply creativity, be open-minded and think outside the box. We explore and experiment with the different flavours of the wine, so we can be called liquid chefs!

Interviewer: What makes blended wines so special?

Johann: With blended wines there are no rules – anything goes. Blended wines are more interesting with added layers and dimensions as they are made up of different varietals. It is about finding the best characteristic of each component and combining it to create a masterpiece.

Interviewer: Are blended wines popular?

Johann: Yes, more consumers are starting to enjoy blended wines. These wines offer something new and exciting.

Interviewer: What are the main blended wine styles?

Johann: You have your Bordeaux blends, which are known worldwide. These wines are complex, high in tannin structure, age well and are perfect to enjoy with heavy food dishes such as meat (steaks) or lamb.

Rhone style blends are softer and spicier with juicy fruit flavours. These wines can be paired with lighter meals such as veal or chicken.

‘Truly South African’ is the Cape blends. These wines are very aromatic and fruit forward and partner perfectly with spicy foods such as curries and bobotie.

Winter is time for pruning in the Cape. Care is taken to get the right amount of bud load (number of buds) per vine. This is the starting point for managing the quality and quantity of fruit that will be harvested for KWV in vintage 2011.

From July onwards, producers will plant new vineyards that will supply future resources. All new plantings are done in collaboration with KWV with a clear end-goal of the desired cultivar, quality and style.

Planning for the next vintage and evaluating the current wines are some of the wine team’s main responsibilities during the post-harvest period.

Through classification tasting sessions they evaluate all wines to establish whether specific vineyards produced the expected results. Through this they gain a better understanding of the potential of the various vineyards. This also serves to identify opportunities for improvement and helps producers achieve new goals.

During the winter season we all like to hibernate and keep warm in the cold weather (and maybe watch a football match or two). We all need rest and recuperation and the same applies to the vineyards. Cobus van Graan, KWV chief viticulturist told me what they’re up to during the chills and downpours of the Cape winter.

In winter the vineyard teams start preparing for the upcoming season and do maintenance work, such as fixing trellis and irrigation systems as well as servicing spray pumps and vineyard equipment. This is all in preparation for the budding of the vineyards which will coincide with the arrival of spring.

During every autumn they sow cover crops (oats, rye, etc) in the vine rows. These cover crops improve the soil structure, increase the soil’s organic content, naturally suppress unwanted weeds and also serve as a water-saving mulch during the warmer summer months. Judging from the growth rate to date, 2010 seems to be a great season for cover crops.

The weather thus far has been close to ideal for the dormant vines. Ample cold weather has met the chill requirements of the vines. Abundant rain during May and June has saturated soils and filled dams and rivers, ensuring that soil temperatures stay low. This sets the scene for an ideal start to the season.