The gambling side of winemaking is the weather business. We study the weather every day, looking to the future, assessing the past and strategize the journey to next harvest. In a nutshell our business is playing “good weather/ bad weather” roulette. Our Hemel-en-Aarde location is special in that it is influenced by our proximity to the nearby Indian/Atlantic Ocean which is insecure, but favourably so because it has this ability to moderate our micro-climate and shelter us from summer’s heat. It provides affirmation for Pinot Noir to produce happy wine grapes in our valley! (Pinot will not perform in warm to hot locations.) This past winter has upped the stakes for 2013 vintage prospects. It is still early and still cold, but reports confirm that this last winter has over-achieved in its accumulation of desired “cold” units. This is a bonus and offers a head-start over previous vintages, but we await to see what weather cards are going to be dished out during the rest of the season. Is it going to be the Ace of Spades? Such is the delicious and vexing arena of “wine weather” roulette. Further comment is the 2010 roulette wheel which came to a welcome stop on 93 pts recently... in Wine Spectator Magazine... Galpin Peak Pinot 2010 vintage... Perhaps impolite to claim this was the spin of the wheel but it is our best WS score ever and at last confirms what I have firmly believed to have been a stellar vintage. Burgundy vintage 2012 now collected is prosaically a rude reminder (or should I say a connoisseurs reminder?) of how tough the impact of weather can be, as only half the expected grapes were collected. Our next vintage is February 2013 which follows on from our more than generous Feb 2012. Let’s watch the white ball cascade over the rotating “weather wheel” (of the next two months) and await to see where it lands? Watch this space in six months time! May the festive season reward you with plenty of great wine times in the sun, as endless corks are pulled during this time of gathering with our loved ones! Read Complete Newsletter online.....