The Secrets of our Success  (Part One)

A balanced vineyard is the first requisite for our quality grapes. A balanced vine means that there should be a balance between the root system, the crop carrying capacity and the foliage of the vineyard. When these factors are in balance you can expect berries and  bunches of the same size and you can expect even ripening. Much work needs to be done during pruning and the management of the canopy to achieve the balance. Many other factors affect the balance of the vine, so one must keep striving for perfection.

At verraison we start our grape sorting process. Here we remove all bunches that have not changed sufficiently in color. This process ensures that the remaining grapes all ripen simultaneously.

Notice the green bunches lying in the foreground and the colored bunch still on the vine.

Once the harvest dates have been decided, one block, for instance, could be harvested four times. This is because the one block could be situated on different soil types and would achieve optimal ripeness days apart.

The final sort is achieved after harvest on manual sorting conveyors. This task is performed by trained quality controllers who ensure that only the best enters the de-stemming machine. Here all insects, snails, overripe grapes, and any other unwanted matter would be removed to ensure optimal quality for De Toren Fusion V.

Californian Harvest 

by Albie Koch

On my way to Imagery Winery in Sonoma I stopped off in Vancouver, British Columbia, to visit our importers -Liberty Merchants and also to taste some Canadian wines.

Even though this is still a "young" wine country, I really think some top quality wines will be produced as the vineyards get older and more mature. I was fortunate enough to taste some earlier vintages as well as the current product offerings.

The 2002 Californian harvest started off very slowly and "a little frustrating", as the Sonoma Wine makers put it. Everything seemed to be ripening in the last 2 weeks of the season. It was hectic and we worked 24 hours around the clock during this period.

The Californian weather is much like the Cape with moderately warm days but with very cold nights. The cold nights, I think, is a key factor resulting in the top quality of the wines produced in Sonoma.

I am really impressed with their Petit Syrah. This cultivar has tremendous color with intense flavours, a sort of Shiraz combined with Zinfandel.

As in St Emilion last year I enjoyed sharing ideas and wine cultures with the Californians. Again I realised that each country makes wine to the consumers' requirements and not to the winemakers likes and dislikes.

I am fortunate enough to travel from Sonoma to New York where I will be visiting top wine retailers like Sherry Lehman, Vinexpo and will lunch with Wine Spectator.

I end off my rather extended trip with a visit to Disney's Epcot Centre in Orlando. Here we have a whole program at the Animal Kingdom Wine Festival presenting wines from South Africa. None other than  the Cape Grace will be pairing our wines with South African cuisine.

Should be good fun !

Best of  SA

De Toren Fusion V - Best SA Wine with shorter track record

Recently 27 of South Africa's top wine writers and wine masters got together to judge the best of South Africa. A wide range of topics had to be decided on. S A's Top 5 Wineries, Most Exciting wineries, Best Value at various price ranges, Best Red and White wines etc. 

Only wineries with track records of more than 3 years were considered. Therefore De Toren did not make the cut with only 2 vintages notched up.

There was a category for "Best wine with shorter track record", however. Here we shared the podium with big brother Vergelegen.

How seriously do you take the poll? This is the magazine's view. "As the considered judgements of some of South Africa's most experienced commentators, the results could well be considered as more useful than those emerging from the rarefied atmosphere of a competition."

Fairburn Trophy Wine Show

This inaugural wine show organised by top South African wine writer, Michael Fridjhon, claims to now be the premier SA wine show. As one of the French judges commented "You should be proud if you win a bronze medal at this competition."

"All the entries were judged blind, and were on the tasting bench at the same time, enabling the jury to back taste and compare wines as they evolved in the Riedel glasses." The judges were directed to produce consensus-driven results, using the 100-point system.

There were over 800 entries and 77 entries alone in Bordeaux-style blends.

Fusion V 2000 scored 88 points and was awarded a silver medal. This is only 3 points below the 91 points awarded to the same wine by Wine Spectator earlier in the year. Again South African flagship Kanonkop Paul Sauer 1988 was the only wine to outperform De Toren Fusion V 2000.

Recently our Mona Lisa visited Italy. We found her in Montalcino. She obviously found the Brunello's great.

  Six entries-six medals

Visit our Website  http://www.de-toren.com/

Email us at:           info@de-toren.com

Phone us at:         +27(0)21 881 3119

Fax us at:            +27 (0)21 881 3335

                   Until next time

          Emil and Sonette den Dulk

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De Toren Private Cellar  Polkadraai Road Stellenbosch 

South Africa