On this 300-year-old family-owned farm in the
Klein Drakenstein mountains, no life form is “bad” and nothing is eradicated;
on the contrary, Grieve strives to create conditions that are conducive to more life. “Biodiversity, or the variety
of life in an ecosystem, is a tangible measure of the health and balance of a
particular habitat,” he explains. “It’s important because each species, from
the lowliest microbe to a human being, plays a distinct role in keeping the
planet running smoothly.”
BioLOGIC®
Grieve pioneered the organic-biodynamic-scientific
approach he calls BioLOGIC®. It works as
a dynamic system in which soil and water, plants, animals and people, and
energy are part of a complex web of relationships and networks, interconnected
and interdependent. Guided by the Avondale ethos of “Terra Est Vita”, or “Soil is life”, Grieve bases his system on the
simple but profound principle that healthy soil produces healthy plants.
“We look at broad-spectrum natural nutrition; in
essence, we want to feed not only the plants but all the soil life. We do this
through using things like concentrated sea solids, which have a perfectly
balanced nutrition with up to 90 elements, and our major source of nitrogen is
through incorporating legumes in our cover cropping. If we create the perfect
environment for soil life and feeding this life, it will in turn supply all the
nutrition that our vines need, in perfect balance and plant-available form.”
In order to enhance the farm’s unique energy and
sustain a lively awareness of its special place in the cosmos, Grieve also uses
a full spectrum of biodynamic methods and preparations. These include following
an astronomic planting calendar, which takes into account the influence of
various cosmic forces on our natural environment; and using a “field
broadcaster” energy device that works with natural cosmic energies to stimulate
healthy growth in the vines and improve the quality of the environment and
therefore the grapes.
Avondale is also at the forefront of introducing
and testing the Lunar Tasting Calendar to South Africa’s wine industry. This
calendar has four types of days that relate to a lunar cycle: Root, Fruit, Leaf
and Flower, each of which affects the palate in a different way. The fruit
notes in wines tasted on a Fruit day are regarded as more vibrant and even
overpowering in some cases; during a Leaf tasting, the wines are experienced to
be less sweet, with a dominant, earthy minerality; wines tasted in the Root
cycle appear more subdued; while the Flower cycle is generally regarded as the
best time to taste wine.
ORGANIC AND RESPONSIBLE
Avondale is certified under the WWF Biodiversity
and Wine Initiative (BWI), which acknowledges the responsibility that wine
farmers have to preserve fynbos on their land. Grieve has gone a step further,
and is restoring and re-establishing indigenous fynbos species in the vineyards
themselves. He’s overseen the planting of more than 2 000 indigenous trees on
the farm, and includes fynbos species in the cover crop mixes. (Cover crops are
sown between vine rows to improve the management of a vineyard.)
Organically certified
by Control Union Certifications according to USDA NOP and EU Organic standards,
no pesticides or herbicides whatsoever are used on the farm. When a pest
invades, Grieve relies on nature’s solutions, making use of beneficial natural
bacteria to counteract vine disease at micro level, wasp larvae to control vine
mealybugs, birds of prey to keep rodent populations down, and a squad of
slug-hungry ducks to manage snail infestations.
As a result, the farm is alive with all kinds of
creatures: birds including kingfishers, owls and black eagles, frogs and reptiles,
mammals such as Cape foxes (which breed on the farm), common duiker, grysbok
and steenbok, red caracal, porcupine and spotted genets.
Grieve continuously monitors the health of the
Avondale ecosystem, including using leaf sap monitoring instruments. “Through
these we can keep our finger on the pulse of the vine and see exactly what’s
going on in real time.”
INTO THE CELLAR
The natural
processes continue in the cellar, an ultra-modern gravity-flow installation
that ensures the highest-quality slow wines with the least negative impact on
the wine and the environment. Only natural wild yeasts are used, and there’s
minimum added sulphur.
A natural waste-water system made up of three dams
interlinked by spiralling channels of cleansing reeds emulate the way water is
cleansed in rivers.
“It’s taken us a number of years to refine our
winemaking process and to create the extraordinary wines we aimed for when we
started farming here in 1996,” says Grieve. “It’s an extraordinary process,
complex and slow, but ultimately rewarding. BioLOGIC® allows us to do no harm
to our natural environment while producing hand-crafted wines that are truly
exceptional.”
Avondale produces seven wines: Camissa, a rosé;
Cyclus, a refreshing white blend; Anima, a lively Chenin Blanc; La Luna, a
classic red blend; Samsara, a Syrah; Navitas, the flagship red blend; and
Armilla, a sparkling wine made in the Methode Cap Classique tradition.
“Camissa” is the Khoisan name for Table Mountain,
meaning “place of sweet water”. The 2012 Camissa is made from 60% Muscat de
Frontignan and 40% Mourvèdre grapes. The 26-year-old, naturally cultivated,
low-yield vines produce flavourful fruits that give the Camissa a nose of rose
petals, scented pelargonium and fresh red fruits of the earth, while the hints
of Turkish delight and lemon zest attest to its appearing sweet but finishing
completely dry.
The dynamic, refreshingly complex white blend is called
Cyclus for the elegant way Avondale’s unique life energy swirls through its
invigorating layers. The 2011 vintage is made from Viognier, Chardonnay,
Roussanne, Chenin Blanc and Semillon grapes, pressed as whole bunches then
naturally fermented in 500-litre oak barrels. Its soft, rich nose of violets
and peach, and just a hint of frangipani, is beautifully carried through to the
palate with intense flavours of pear, pineapple, apricot and fig, rounded off
with smooth, subtle oak for a creamy, long-structured finish.
The Chenin Blanc is called Anima, indicative of the
lively minerals of Avondale’s soils. The 2012 Anima is made from hand-picked,
organically grown grapes, whole-bunch pressed then naturally fermented in
500-litre French oak barrels. This wine has an intriguing nose of winter melon,
pineapple, lime and a hint of honey, while the palate is dense with fresh fruit
flavours of gooseberry, quince and peach, all harmonising superbly with a
soulful minerality.
The soft suppleness of the La Luna Bordeaux blend reflects
the graceful ways that Avondale is attuned to cosmic influences and rhythms.
The 2007 is made from healthy grapes that enabled a long post-fermentation
maceration. The wine, which was lightly filtered, went through a number of
gentle rackings before being returned to the barrels to age for 12-16 months.
This classic
blend offers scents of red and dark fruits layered with clean cedar and tobacco
aromas; it has a full, fruit-driven palate with plum and mulberry flavours
seamlessly combining with soft tannins.
Samsara means “to flow on”, and the characterful
Shiraz of this name represents the perpetual renewal and revitalisation of
Avondale’s living system. The grapes for the 2007 were harvested in the early
mornings and underwent a natural fermentation cycle. To finish off, the wine
was aged in barrels for 12-16 months and lightly filtered before bottling. It’s
a well-balanced wine with an exceptional fruit-driven palate, and with soft wood
and white pepper, violets, vibrant red berries and orange peel on the nose.
“Navitas” means energy, and this wine is the
embodiment of Avondale’s unique luminescence and character. The 2008 is made
from 62% Syrah, 24% Mourvèdre and 14% Grenache grapes from 18-year-old
low-yield vines. This has produced an exclusive, limited-release, elegantly
wooded wine with an extraordinary colour and a rich nose of dark stewed fruits,
cloves and cinnamon.
The Armilla Blanc de Blanc 2009 embodies the
celebration of life on the farm. Made from Chardonnay grapes, it is rich and
round on the palate, with a fresh effervescent acidity complemented by a full,
velvety, layered mouth feel.