The emerging Plettenberg Bay wine region
Monday, 25 July, 2011
Norman McFarlane
Norman McFarlane reports on the wine offerings and farming principles from the most eastern wine region in the Western Cape.
When Peter Thorpe, an ichthyologist by profession, bought the farm The Crags 20 km east of Plettenberg Bay, and settled there with his family, he had to decide what to do with the property. Having grown up on a wine farm (Eensgevonden near Rawsonville), it made sense to find out whether his new farm was suitable for growing vines.
An analysis of past weather patterns, and the soil types on the farm convinced him that it was, so he planted his first block of Sauvignon blanc, from which a unique MCC was first made in 2004. The crisp green fruit in an MCC, combined with a fine mousse and bone dry palate make for an unusual but delightful taste experience.
The Plettenberg Bay wine of origin region was promulgated in 2005, giving impetus to the growth of the most eastern wine region in the Western Cape. Named after his children Bram and Manon, the estate now boasts 5 ha of vines – predominantly Sauvignon blanc, 1 ha of Weisser Riesling, some Chardonnay and he is planning to also plant Pinot noir this year.
The Sauvignon Blanc MCC was vinified by Pieter Ferreira at Graham Beck Wines in Robertson for the ’04, ’05, ’06 and ’07 vintages and Teddy Hall made the wines at Koelenhof in Stellenbosch during the ’08 and ’09 harvests. Anton Smal joined him as winemaker in time for the 2010 harvest, and made the MCC, as well as the first still Sauvignon blanc for Bramon, ‘The Crags’, also at Koelenhof. By the 2011 harvest, a 250 ton cellar was constructed and wine was made on the farm for the first time this year.
While the cool climate lends itself to wine production – the farm is 4 km from the sea as the crow flies – it is not without its challenges. Birds are a huge problem. A hole pecked in a berry causes sour rot which affects the whole bunch and as a result, the vines are now covered with nets during season. Peter reckons that his yield increased from around 3 tons per hectare to 7 tons per hectare once he introduced nets.
The vines are planted in sandy loam on koffieklip underpinned by clay. The vineyards are farmed as naturally as possible. No herbicides or pesticides are used, but because of the prevalence of mildew – moisture can be very high in season, and it was particularly bad in the 2011 harvest – there is a strict spray program in place. Using natural fertilisers, the aim is to build up the microbial content of the soil.
Peter Thorpe’s success inspired Pete and Vicki Gent of Packwood just outside Kynsna, to look into the possibility of planting vines. Vicki says that its always been their dream to plant vines, so after a careful site analysis, they put in just under 4 ha of vines.
Planted in sandy loam on koffieklip, she has 1.5 ha of Sauvignon blanc, 1.5 ha Pinot noir, and just under 1 ha of Chardonnay. Packwood is a dairy farm – 900 odd head of cattle on the 1 000 ha estate – so planting the vines was a means of adding value to the estate according to Vicki. Nonetheless, wine production is now at the point where it requires a full time team to manage it.
Birds are as much a problem at Packwood as at Bramon, which is countered by the use of nets. Proximity to the moisture-laden forest and less dry heat and wind than is ideally desirable, makes mildew a potentially serious problem, but with a really strict spray program in place, it is controllable.
Buck are also a problem, for which Vicki sprays chilli, but that doesn’t keep the baboons at bay. That requires regular patrols through the vineyard with the dogs during season she says.
Again, the focus is on farming as naturally as possible, using natural fertilisers – elephant dung from the nearby elephant park, chicken manure from a neighbouring farm, and cow manure from the dairy herd on the farm. Vicki describes it as a process of “putting back what you take out” stressing that her focus is on building up the nutritive content of the soils.
The ’09 Packwood Sauvignon Blanc was quite tropical in nature, fresh fruity and very full, while the 2010 vintage was zestier lighter and a lot fresher. The 2011 vintage shows great promise according to Vicki.
Teddy Hall makes Packwood’s wines in Stellenbosch, necessitating the grapes being transported there in a refrigerated truck.
A pure pink MCC, made from 100% Pinot noir in 2010 may be released towards the end of the year if it is considered ready. Just 1 000 bottles, it was on the lees for a year, and Teddy says it shows great promise.
Will they build a cellar in the future? Probably something small for their own use, but there are no plans to increase the size of the vineyard. Vicki reckons she wants to concentrate on managing the existing vineyards perfectly.
A few kilometres further east, just outside Plettenberg Bay lies the farm Bosky Dell, owned by Greg and Rae Gilbert. The farmhouse is down in a beautiful valley, through which the Bos River flows, but high on top of the mountain to the north, the Gilbert’s have planted 12.5 ha of vines.
It wasn’t easy going according to Rae, who by default has become the viticulturist. The vines - mainly Sauvignon blanc with 3 ha Pinot noir and 1.5 ha Wiesser Riesling – are planted in sandy loam on koffieklip and no sooner were the vineyards planted, than the water supply ran out. The river literally ran dry overnight, the first time in living memory according to Rae, rendering the irrigation system useless. The vines were watered by hand, two litres per vine, which only just kept most of them alive. Of the 35 000 vines planted last year, they lost around 2 000. A borehole has since been drilled.
The vines are being farmed according to biodynamic principals, and the initial focus is on restoring the natural health of the soil. No artificial pesticides, herbicides or fungicides are used. The vines are sprayed with a natural preparation that stimulates the immune system response early in the season, which helps the vines naturally fend off mildew. A strain of bacteria is used to combat fungal growth. Nonetheless, like Bramon and Packwood, a spray program is in place to further control mildew in season.
The first wine will be produced in 2013 under the Gilbrook Wine Estate label, and plans for a cellar are well advanced, according to Greg. Initially with a 300 ton capacity, it will be possible to expand cellar capacity to keep pace with the planned expansion program of the vineyard which will be phased in over the next few years.
Along with a Sauvignon blanc and a Riesling – like Peter Thorpe, the Gilbert’s believe the terroir holds great promise for this cultivar – Greg plans to produce an MCC.
Newstead Wine is located on the Redford Road just 300 meters from the N2, where Doug and Sue Lund are awaiting their first crop in February 2012. Plantings of Chardonnay (2 ha), Sauvignon blanc (2 ha) and Pinot noir (1 ha), are expected to yield a Chardonnay and a Sauvignon blanc still wine next harvest, and a Pinot noir/Chardonnay MCC in 2013. The wines will be made at the Bramon cellar, and a tasting centre is to be established at Newstead.
Just off the Kranshoek road that leads to the airport at Plettenberg Bay, lies the tiny 2.3 ha (3 000 Chardonnay, 3 000 Pinot noir, 330 Syrah vines) vineyard of Plettenvale Wines, which produced its first Chardonnay/Pinot noir pink MCC this year. Vinified at Bramon by Anton Smal (Plettenvale has its own tanks at the cellar), there are plans to construct a boutique-style cellar at Plettenvale in time for next year’s harvest, according to Gloria Strack, provided they can get through the planning and rezoning processes in time. If not, the next harvest will probably be vinified at Bramon once more. Although Plettenvale plans to dedicate its entire harvest to MCC production in future, cash flow considerations may well dictate the production of some still rosè. Gloria says that this year, she produced a small quantity of Syrah and rosè from the Chardonnay/Pinot noir press juice garagiste-style, but that’s just for their own consumption.
In 2007, Ian and Bruce Anderson planted 4 000 Sauvignon blanc vines (2.5 ha) on their farm just above Keurbooms, overlooking the ocean with stupendous views of Robberg in the middle distance, and Andersons Wine Estate was born. Although the view may have no effect on the vines, the cooling sea breezes most certainly do according to Bruce Anderson, yielding some “unique flavours”. Unfavourable weather conditions this harvest resulted in a small crop that yielded only 1 900 bottles of Sauvignon blanc as a first vintage, vinified by Anton Smal at Bramon, but Bruce expects around 4 000 bottles next harvest. The wine is marketed under the name Leto Venus, the botanical name of a particularly large moth which is prevalent in the Keurbooms tree common to the area. Although the Andersons will continue to make their wine at Bramon, they will be expanding the vineyard in the future.
Eight other producers will be coming on stream in the next two to three years, and chances are, they will be producing Sauvignon blanc and MCC’s. Could this region become South Africa’s very own “Champagne”?