South Africa is in the middle of the harvest (now towards the end), a harvest that this year is unusually early for many producers. Oldenburg in the beautiful Banghoek Valley in Stellenbosch started harvesting three weeks earlier than last year and we heard the same thing from many of the other producers we visited in South Africa a couple of weeks ago.
One reason is the dry weather during the spring, which has lasted all summer. It hasn’t been too hot. Although during our two weeks in February there was something of a heat wave (really lovely) and Oldenburg measured temperatures up to 35 degrees C. But the acidity is still good, confirms winemaker Nic van Aarde. The grapes are ripe and healthy looking but a small problem we have heard from several, including Nic, is that all the grape varieties have ripened at the same time.
Normally, they don’t, each grape variety and each location ripen in its own time, which makes harvesting work and planning easier. But not so this year.
The South African producers are looking forward to a successful 2023.
Travel: Come on a wine tour to South Africa with BKWine.
