And there you have it folks, the 2019 harvesting season is done and dusted and the Klawer Wine Cellar team is proud to announce that they managed to produce a variety of delicious wines from the 2019 harvest.
“Not only did we suffer from drought-related issues, but we also struggled with heavy winds which damaged the vineyards in the blooming period, one of the most vital times of growth, but we managed to produce marvelous wines for all our wine lovers,” Franci Nortje, PRO and tasting specialist at the Klawer Wine Cellar explains.
This harvest faced a lot of obstacles along the way, but one way or another the team from Klawer Wine Cellar managed to overcome most of them.
The team at the cellar received their first grapes on Thursday, 3 January, and ever since then the production team worked persistently, receiving approximately 1000+ tons per day, up until the end of March.
“I am so excited about the great quality wines we’re producing from this year’s harvest. “The analysis showed high acid levels and the pH levels were low, and that’s perfect! As a result of the high sugar content we will be able to make more full-bodied, more aromatic wine, which will surprise the consumer,” Pieter van Aarde, production manager at Klawer Wine Cellar, explained.
The yeast being used in the wine-making contributes to the taste and nose aromas of the wine and plays a vital role in the winemaking process. The team also experiments with new yeasts every year, but ultimately they try and use the ones they are comfortable with and trust. These yeasts bring out the best possible fruit aromas in the juice to ensure the best end result.
According to one of our white wine makers, Tiaan van Zyl, the Chenin Blanc in the Trawal area and Basie van Lill’s Bush Vine Sauvignon Blanc in Graafwater, caught his attention this year.
“Because of our warm climate we expect fruitier and more tropical aromas and I think we will definitely have that in our 2019 vintage wines. Our white wine team is currently busy with the centrifuge process, which is one of the ways to filter wines to enhance the appearance, removing unwanted particles, and to ensure that re-fermentation can’t occur,” Van Zyl added.
Overall, the intake of tons reduced by 10% compared to 2018, but just taking the red grapes in consideration, the cellar received much less this year compared to any other year. Roelof van Schalkwyk, red winemaker at Klawer Wine Cellar, is still very positive even though he didn’t receive the amount of grapes he wished for. For him, the Pinotage and Cabernet Sauvignon will excel this year.
“Although it’s too early to say, those two cultivars show beautiful flavours on the nose and I’m excited to watch them become great wines,” Van Schalkwyk added.
Andries Blake, CEO of Klawer Wine Cellar, is 100% convinced that although they didn’t receive the desired volumes, they will produce high-quality wines to put on the shelves for all the Klawer wine lovers to enjoy.
“We are very proud of our production team for all their hard work and we know, we’re going to be even more proud of the end result in the bottles,” Blake also added.
The team of Klawer Wine Cellar used #2019harvest on all social media platforms to keep their audience updated on harvest news. Follow their social media for more information and updates on the 2019 harvest. Klawer Wine Cellar offers a complimentary wine tasting at their tasting room located on the N7 Cape/Namibia route outside Klawer.
They are open on weekdays from 08:00 to 17:00 and on Saturdays from 09:00 until 13:00. For more information, visit Klawer Wine Cellar’s website www.klawerwine.co.za or take a look at their social media profiles on Facebook @KlawerWynkelder/KlawerWines, Twitter @klawerwyn or Instagram @klawerwyn. For wine sales, contact Franci Nortje at ontvangs@klawerwyn.co.za.
