Growing Good Grapes
October 12, 2019good grapes,Once Upon a Vineyard,Pinot Noir,Plettenberg Bay,wine farm,winemakers,wine harvest,quality vs quantitywine growers
"Good wine is made in the vineyard”. This is a phrase you often hear when you…
The Optimal Output Is ...
October 6, 2019Once Upon a VineyardPinot Noir,Plettenberg Bay,wine farm,winemakers,wine harvest,quality vs quantity,optimal harvest
I went to a Pinot presentation and workshop hosted at Bramon and run by Jan…
The Rhythm of Work
September 28, 2019Dogs of the vines,Once Upon a Vineyard,Pinot Noir,Plettenberg Bay,wine farm,winemakers,wine harvest,quality vs quantityphysical endurance
Farming is really hard work. It takes a particular kind of stamina to do field…
It's Quality
September 16, 2019Once Upon a VineyardPinot Noir,Plettenberg Bay,wine farm,winemakers,wine harvest,quality vs quantity
The scale of wine farming is like everything else: as you produce more, so your…
Do not despair!
September 7, 2019bunch rot,noble rot,Once Upon a Vineyard,Pinot Noir,Plettenberg Bay,wine farm,winemakers,wine harvest,phylloxeraCrown gall
Miraculously, almost all of our first vintage was sold before we could blink.…
Pinot Noir
September 1, 2019Oregan wines,New Zealand wines,Once Upon a Vineyard,Pinot Noir,anton smal,Plettenberg Bay,wine farm,Burgundy,winemakerswine harvest
Pinot’s real home is Burgundy and if you know the grape you probably harbour…
Stamina & Bonding
August 25, 2019cordon arm,weeding,field-work,internodes,Once Upon a Vineyard,Pinot Noir,Plettenberg Bay,wine farm,The Crags,heartbreak grape,pruningsecateurs
In between spraying and suckering (stripping excess side-shoots), you need to…
Training the Vines
August 17, 2019secateurs,cordon arm,Once Upon a Vineyard,Pinot Noir,Plettenberg Bay,wine farm,The Crags,heartbreak grape,Deltexpruning
The vineyard started to look like something. Especially when we stood at the…
Disaster: Nematodes
August 9, 2019thank heavens for dogs,Once Upon a Vineyard,Pinot Noir,Plettenberg Bay,wine farm,The Crags,heartbreak grape,nematodescutworms
Because we had started so late in the winter, the vines were already in…
Pinot Noir it is!
August 3, 2019Once Upon a VineyardPinot Noir,Plettenberg Bay,wine farm,wine of origin,Plettenberg Bay Winelands Association,The Crags,heartbreak grape
We identified a part of the farm which we thought would be best-suited for the…











