DELHEIM

With just over 100 days to the Soccer World Cup, the Delheim Team would like to wish the rest of the South Africa all the best. We have been doing our part for Soccer Fridays, but let’s make every day a celebration of our culture and love for this wonderful country.

The Delheim Team

Initially, the ample winter cold and rain necessary for a great 2010 harvest augured well for Delheim.  Unfortunately this optimism was not destined to last, as the long cold and wet spell continued through the growing season during September and October, hampering the development of those varietals flowering at the time.  To make matters worse, there was a great deal of pressure from possible downy mildew infection.

 Even though the vineyards did not succumb to this additional threat, we then experienced uncharacteristically severe storm winds in November and December, resulting in extensive damage.  This wind was in fact so ferocious that shoots actually broke right off the cordon of grapes.  The Sauvignon Blanc was the worst hit, with an estimated 70% loss, which was especially devastating to us as we had initially thought that the crop would be an exceptional one this year. As it stands, we were only able to harvest 800 kg of grapes from a 2,5 ha vineyard which usually yields an average of 15 000 kg. 

 February is, of course, usually a very hot month, but so far it has been uncharacteristically moderate and cool, resulting in good quality white grapes.  Fortunately, the red grapes look more promising in volume, and only the Pinotage has not fared as well as hoped.  The Cabernet Sauvignon is ripening sooner than expected, and, provided that the current cool weather persists, we can expect a superb red wine vintage in 2010.

Kind regards

The Delheim Team

As you can see, our little Riesling bunch has changed a lot over the last few weeks. Harvest season has already started, but the Riesling grapes will stay on the vines for another few weeks. We harvest the grapes at a very high sugar level and for this reason we leave them on the vines to reach optimal ripeness. To get the sugar level we need, Delheim relies on Botrytis cinerea (more on that in our next update).

Kind regards
The Delheim Team

Our hearts go out to the farmers in the Franschhoek wine valley struggling with the terrible fires that have plagued the area over the last few days. Fires were reported all along the west coast up to Knysna. Please think of all the people suffering under these horrible circumstances.

Kind regards
The Delheim Team

Being part of the marketing and sales team and not out there in the vineyards, it is always difficult to understand the daily stresses on the vineyard team. The past two weeks have probably been one of the most stressful we have yet experienced at Delheim. The vineyards are yielding 50% less grapes on some varieties. The Sauvignon Blanc and Pinotage have been particularly badly affected. For the sales team this is really bad news as these are our growing brands. But then, we are a wine producer and not a factory with limitless inputs, so we are prone to annual fluctuations. Come and join us for a glass of moss and taste some of the daily harvested grapes, have a glass of wine in the restaurant and celebrate life, sunshine and the beautiful surroundings with us.