Blackenbrook Predicts Best Vintage Ever

Blackenbrook Predicts Best Vintage Ever

It’s all smiles at Blackenbrook Family Vineyard in Tasman this week as the harvesting reveals what they believe will be their best year yet for quality grapes.

Vineyard manager and Winemaker Daniel Schwarzenbach says bin after bin of their handpicked grapes are showing the effects of sunny dry days and cool night temperatures with an intensity of flavour he has never seen at his vineyard before.

“The tests confirm that the fruit is fully ripe with sugar levels of up to 26 Brix and the taste is incredible – amazingly intense. It’s exciting working with the new wines and I can’t wait to get them into bottles and share the experience.”

Daniel says after a rather difficult start to the season, the Indian Summer has been ideal for the vines in the Nelson and Tasman region and Blackenbrook’s coastal microclimate with its constant air movement helped keeping the vines healthy and working at their best.

The idyllic grape weather has also combined with the vineyard being what Daniel describes as in perfect balance this year:

“We have been aiming to create a natural balance between the land, the vines and the processes and this year it’s really all come together. There was hardly any leaf growth since the nets went on which means the vines put all their energy towards ripening the crop. “
Daniel also puts this year’s fantastic grapes down to new vineyard practices such as having grass cover under the vines (as opposed to killing any living organism with weed-spray).
“It’s made a huge difference. It’s changed the micro-climate around the vines and the additional competition helps de-vigourating the vineyard - and the little crawlies love it, too: I have never seen so many ear-wigs in my life,” says Daniel
The harvest is still underway with a team of 15 enthusiastic pickers and a cellar-hand from Alsace in France.

Blackenbrook is a family vineyard located in Tasman, Nelson. Their 20 hectare block produces 7 wine varietals, many of which have won awards. The vineyard and gravity-fed winery are run as sustainably as possible.

The Winemaking Team: Thomas and Daniel Schwarzenbach with Martin Goebel from Germany

All smiles at Blackenbrook Family Vineyard: Daniel Schwarzenbach, Anne Haswell and Martin Goebel

ENDS

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