The unique Iona Wine Farm is situated in Elgin in the Western Cape, surrounded by the UNESCO-certified Kogelberg Biosphere. It is the highest altitude winery in Elgin and home to the coolest-growing season vineyards in South Africa. RealIPM have been working with Iona Wine Farm co-proprietor Rozy Gunn for several years to enable the sustainable approach in parts of the farm.
The philosophy at Iona is to make wine that expresses the soils and climate as closely as possible, using sustainable farming methods and maximising the use of natural products in farming and winemaking. Everything is done in-house, from the vineyard to the wine distribution. For Rozy and her husband Andrew, Iona is the sole source of their focus, passion and great joy.
From artist to agriculturalist
We recently had the privilege of sitting down with Rozy Gunn, who bought her farm about 20 years ago—a big change from lecturing at the Wits and Pretoria Technikon and working as a sculptor.
Rozy acquired her land during the “euphoric” period of wine farms popping up in the Elgin region, which was originally known as ‘apple country’. But farmers were beginning to realise that vines fared very well in the same environment, and were possibly an alternative to apples.
Thus, Rozy planted her first vines in 10 hectares of the 35-hectare farm in 2002, despite very poor soil and a ‘fertility rating’ of 3/10. Rozy’s land is known as Brocha Farm. Here, she takes her own farming approach.
Click HERE to read the full article