Karen and John Loubster who are the owners at Silverthorn Winery in Robertson, have had like all of us a difficult year!
We have stocked their MCC now for 2 years.
This year they like all of us have had their ups and downs. One piece of good news was The Green Man (their 100% chardonnay Cap Classique) was awarded the highest classification of 5 stars in Platters 2021 South African wine guide.
Karen has emailed me with other news from the vineyard ; _
"Despite very challenging circumstances and a total lockdown on alcohol sales of 160 days here in South Africa, we have managed to grow sales, both locally & internationally. To say that we are exceptionally thankful, is putting it mildly.
The other good news is of course that the drought has now been thoroughly broken, with good rains and a winter that has had plenty of frosty days, not something experienced that often, but of course hugely desirable for the rest time it offers our vineyards.
We are about to enter Spring & with that comes the hope of a wonderful new season, as more and more people are getting vaccinated & are able to travel.
We will be releasing our first Green Man magnums ( 2016 Vintage – 58 months on the lees) in around October this year, as well as the 2nd vintage of River Dragon, our Colombar based Cap Classique. River Dragon was very well received & our trial release last year, of 2900 bottles sold out far quicker than anticipated. We have many people waiting in anticipation of this next release.
Our biodiversity is a very important aspect of our farming style. Since we do not use any pesticides, we have an incredible diversity of insects: solitary bees and pollinators of all sorts, different mantises & spiders, bugs ,reptiles like skinks and a variety of snakes, and not to forget our fascinating bigger residents like the cape clawless otter ( not that easy to capture on the camera).
This is the time of year we grow variable cover crops of Hairy Vetch, turnips, radishes and oats on open fields to produce sufficient compost for the health of our soils, this is besides the wonderful abundance of indigenous flowers, and so-called weeds like stinging nettle and dandelions, amongst countless others.
Our wonderful team of staff, Willem, Andries, Andrew & Sophia are currently pruning vineyards whilst I am busy pruning the almonds and other fruit trees. This preparation for the new season is wonderful and watching nature unfold over the coming months is like the unwrapping of a precious present."
In the meantime, here at carte-du-vin.co.uk we are proud to be able to support the vineyards and their workers and thank all our loyal customers for buying their wines!
The River Dragon - £17.99
The Genie - £19.99
The Green Man - £21.99
The Jewel Box - £25.00