The Old Vine Project
Wines from old vines
The old Vine Project
The Old Vine Project aims to preserve vines over 35 years old by raising awareness of this wonderful heritage, allowing winegrowers to label their wines as "Old Vine" and thus make the customer aware that this is a wine produced from grapes that come from old and sometimes forgotten patches of land. By becoming a member, wine drinkers can follow the history of these wines, where they come from, the exact slope and location of the vineyards, the soils, get to know the winemaker and learn all about the history of the individual wines.
Natural heritage "Old vines"
"These notes remind me of our country. The cold late afternoon winds on the hills behind Lamberts Bay on the west coast. The smell of seaweed and mussels. The sense of space and colour in the spring between fields of yellow sunflowers, purple lupins and green wheat between Moorreesburg and Cirtusdal. They remind me of the sight of a jackal buzzard or a nervous mongoose darting across a country lane. Of the smell of geraniums and rooibos tea in the veld, of discovering a bird's nest hanging thumb-sized between two grapevines. Of a warm summer's day swimming in a mountain river or the beautiful call of a blue crane. All of this is combined in these old vines." "Let's preserve the old vines of this land and the many wonderful wines produced from them," appeals Rosa Kruger.
Old vine wines in our range
Content: 0.75 Liter (€126.67* / 1 Liter)
Content: 0.75 Liter (€144.00* / 1 Liter)
The history of the Old Vine Project
Old vines often reflect the life and culture of the people, the fishermen on the coast, the sheep farmers in the interior, the wheat farmers in the Swartland and the fruit growers of the Piekenierkloof. They are often kept out of a gut feeling and not for financial reasons. Old vines exist for decades because there are passionate people who nurture and care for them. Old vines and their wines are like a monument that the winegrower creates out of love for the land.
There are 10 vineyards in South Africa that are over 100 years old, and a vine is considered an old vine if it is over 35 years old. The Old Vine Project (OVP) aims to preserve as many old vines as possible in South Africa. It believes that many of the 2816 hectares of old vines produce special wines with a particular character and purity. They tell the culture and history of the country. The OVP wants to make wine farmers, winemakers and wine drinkers aware of the benefits of old vines.
The project aims to develop a culture that deals with the care of vines, regardless of their age. The chance of vines ageing increases with proper care in their youth. The vines should not be carried off by viruses or other diseases in their youth. The renewed focus on the grape quality that old vines can produce may offer South Africa the opportunity to get a better price for grapes.
Rosa Kruger travelled the world 17 years ago and discovered the many old vines in France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Argentina and the unique character of the wines. She asked herself the question.
"Where are the old vines of South Africa?" "Where are the old vines of South Africa?"
The search began in 2002, when many people sent her names of farms and locations where old vines were planted and still existed. At the time she was the vineyard manager of L'Ormarins and the farm managers of Rupert Farm Chris Loubser and Johan Nel were the first to report old forgotten blocks in Skurfberg and Mountonshoek. Together with Johan Viljoen, who was a consultant at VinPro at the time, she went on a week-long search and found what she was looking for on the west coast, where Eben Sadies Skerpioen had just been born.
They found Grenache in Piekenierskloof, Chenin Blanc and Semillon in Skurfkop, which grew like small trees, and nothing in Wuppertal. The producers' information on the vines grown was confidential at the time. The team searched for old vines themselves and had to write down the information. During long periods of travelling and painstaking work, a list was compiled, together with wonderful stories about culture, families and seasons.
In 2014, SAWIS agreed to publish a list of vines over 35 years old, but only with the express permission of the producers. Jancis Robinson MW asked for a list of old vines from South Africa and journalists began tasting wines from old vines in South Africa and reporting on their unique character. In 2016, Johann Rupert agreed to sponsor the OVP and André Morgenthal and Jaco Engelbrecht also came on board after being informally involved in the project for a few years.
Do old vines make better wine?
Rosa Kruger, one of the world's leading and most respected viticulturists, believes that this is very often the case. She believes that age often brings a different facet, intensity, texture and perceived freshness. Less fruit and varietal character, but more extracts from the terroir and soil.