Tanya Fourie no longer works at Kanu, leaving the Team in a bit of a “Man-Down” situation. But there seems to be nothing that our guys cannot cope with, as adrenalin is constantly pushing them forward. Spirits are at an all-time high as the once solitude, quiet cellar has transformed into a vibey night club. As the music blares, everyone bobs their heads to the beat of the song; smiling, working and never stopping. So you ask yourself, “Where does this energy come from?” It is simple. For 365 days of the year, everyone else on the farm work feverishly to get the vines looking spectacular. They weed it, water it, prune it, work the vine’s canopy, work the soil and, and, and. It just never stops! So this one season in the year, it is the Cellar Team’s responsibility to make the result (of lots of hard work) beautiful. To show that all the hard work was not in vain. Because at the end of the day everyone on Kanu has the same dream, this makes us a team. We all do our best, bring our part, so that Kanu can do well, grow and thrive! It is only through the success of our Brand that we all get rewarded. Up to date, the Sauvignon Blanc for both Stellenbosch and Durbanville has been harvested, with their fermentation aromas slowly driving me insane with thirst. The first batch of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes for Kanu’s Giselle MCC were the first grapes to kick off the 2013 harvest. They have completed their fermentation and are ready to be blended. The bottling of the MCC will take place late March (as there is no time until then). The rest of the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, for the Chardonnay Pinot Noir blend, will come in early March as the sugars start to rise. Yesterday the first batch of Merlot came in for Kanu’s Merlot Rose. Since the Hilton hotel has listed Kanu’s Merlot Rose on all their African wine lists, we are running to stay ahead with the demand. Today the “Chenin Rush” starts as Chenin from Stellenbosch, Swartland and Voor-Perdeberg start pouring in. The quality of the grapes is outstanding and the pressure is on. The Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc for the Barrel Fermented wines will only come in early March as the sugar needs to be pretty high for those beauties. Then it is just the Viognier to harvest, before the full blow of red grapes start pouring in. For my dogs, harvest season is heaven as they just LOVE wine grapes. Walks on the farm have been replaced by periods of standing under the vines, pulling off grapes. (You can only imagine how funny the sausage dogs are!) The area outside the cellar is kept clean by 4 dogs munching on the loose fallen grapes. Altogether, everyone is happy as the 2013 harvest blossoms on. Andrew and I have decided to join the Cellar Team a few nights a week, to be part of the fun. It is promising to be a sticky business, but I cannot wait! I will let you know how it goes in next month’s letter... Have a fabulous March! Click HERE to read complete newsletter (pdf format)...