Its not every day that you can take wisdom from a real life Sioux medicine man. Black Elk passed away in 1950, but never a truer word was spoken. Nowhere have I seen a better example of this being taken to heart than at De Toren.

I’ve always been fascinated by what goes on in the vineyard. Many a wine maker has used words like “wine is made in the vineyard” and “you can’t make good wine from bad grapes”. The French even goes as far as to say that there’s no such thing as a wine maker – a wine makes itself – and viticulturists are the people responsible for the wine.

In South Africa we do things slightly different, but it does not make the above any less true. And you will be hard pressed to find a better example of how the work in the vineyard translates into the bottle than at De Toren. As we drove into the estate, I saw a vineyard to our right, and run-off pipes about every 10 – 15 meters going under the road, originating in the vineyard. Ernest Manuel, the farm manager and viticulturist explained to us that the run off pipes effectively helped create a giant potted plant of this vineyard, planted to Merlot. Clever use of irrigation and records of where the water table should be at any given time of the year for optimum growth and vine stress creates a perfect environment for vines. In fact, the quality of the Merlot vineyard is so good, that it is used as a benchmark by the University of Stellenbosch for their viticulture research.

Another fascinating aspect of De Toren’s vineyard management is how they ensure that the micro organisms in the ground are at an optimum level and helps with the fertilising of the soil. Ernest explained to us that a generation of farmers destroyed the micro organisms in the ground through irresponsible use of chemical fertiliser and sprays. The trick is to get the organisms back, and they are doing this by composting organic vineyard and wine making waste and reintroducing earthworms into the soil. Ernest repeatedly stressed the importance of earthworms for healthy soil as they aerate the soil, ensuring that the roots of the vines can reach deep into the ground.

South Africa in general, and Stellenbosch in particular have a serious problem with virused vines. I asked Ernest how they cope if they avoid spraying. He explained to us that leaf roll virus (the most common) is spread through a little nematode called a mealie bug. The female is the culprit, but she’s also incapable of moving around on her own. In steps the humble ant. The mealie bug excretes a sweet liquid that the ants love, and they actually cart the female mealie bug around so she can feed. Hence the ants indirectly contribute to spreading the virus. What Ernest does, is instead of spraying chemicals onto the vines to kill the mealie bugs, they control the movement of the ants. A ring with molasses is placed at the base of the vine, keeping the ants off the rest of the vine. If the mealie bug can’t move, it can’t feed and it dies without any chemical intervention. And minimal chemical intervention is what clever and responsible farming is about.

Probably the cleverest manipulation of insects is the use of a copper wire ring around the stem of the vine. Crawling insects do not crawl over the ring, as the wire scratches their tummies and hurts them. You have to love that kind of imagery! Snails are controlled with a team of ducks and chickens are also allowed to roam the vineyards.

I did not even touch on the actual wine making process. Suffice to say its another article on its own as the same clever thinking that is used in the vineyard is also used in the cellar. It all translates into amazing wines that has won numerous accolades world wide.

I’ll leave you with another quote that I find rather relevant in the marvellous De Toren instance.

“A wine does not just command your attention, but rather, it rewards it.”

De Toren certainly rewards us all.

www.de-toren.com

Polkadraai Road, Stellenbosch

021 – 881 3119