Harvest started later due to nice Winter rain and cooler weather at the start of Summer. We’ve been seeing very good analysis coming through and the taste of the berries are very good. We did have some sunburn in December with the hot spell around Christmas Day and some vineyards handled it better than others. The vineyards that were farmed with a thinner canopy got a bit sunburnt, which will be a bit of a challenge in the cellar when we get around to it. Our Old Vine Chenin Blanc was particularly affected by this. 

I think it’s because the vineyards weren’t quite used to this level of sudden heat, not having had a gradual increase that could harden the vines to the intense sun. 

Thus far we have about 20 tons of Pinotage in the bag, with still a lot to go. All our dryland vineyards started at the same time. Although harvest started a week later than other years, we were spot-on with our prediction. We’re seeing good acidities on the Pinotage, which is normally not the case, but bodes well for the wines. The colour of the berries and the tonnages are also looking good, so we’re very happy with the progression of the 2025 harvest thus far. We’re looking forward to the rest of the grapes coming in.

Weatherwise it’s a typical Wellington Summer, with hot and dry conditions during the day, with cooler temperatures in the evening. It’s the cooler evenings that kept the acidity as lively, which is something we do not normally experience. There’s also a prediction of some cooler weather during the harvest time.

All in all, everyone’s excited, the nightshift has kicked in and spouses have become harvest-widows; only to see the winemakers again after harvest… 

Best of luck to our entire team and to all our fellow winemakers for the remainder of harvest 2025!