The year was the hardest year by a long shot. We had unprecedented rains and storms at the beginning and throughout the year it never seemed to stop. The region suffered from an uncontrollable mildew growth, no matter how many times we sprayed and worked the canopies throughout the year, the mildew infected the flowers and killed two thirds of the year’s harvest.
We still persevered, making what we could from all that was left, much to the amusement of many of our friends who had written off the entire year. Renting space in a friend’s winery we made our first wine. A simple Syrah, Marselan, Caladoc blend.
The grapes were treated with SO₂ on reception to stabilise them and prevent unwanted microbial activity, and then macerated in an open top lagar for four days before pressing them halfway through the fermentation.
