Lock, stock and wine barrel: 2020 wine harvest

After nearly being cancelled because of Covid-19 and lockdown, the 2020 wine harvest is set to be one of the best.

There has been favourable response from all of the country’s wine regions after the harvest ended this month.

SA Wine Industry Information and Systems viticulturists and cellar producers expected the wine grape crop of the 2020 harvest to be a little larger 2019 wine grape crop, which it was.

Now, since the end of the harvest, industry leaders are expecting extraordinary wines from the 2020 harvest.

One of the last harvests that had so many wine producers smiling was 2015 – wines produced that year can still fetch a pretty penny.

“Although there is great variation in crop size due to the geographic distribution of the South African wine industry, the estimated crop size can in general be attributed to smaller berry sizes, the prevalence of botrytis rot and ongoing drought in certain areas,” says Conrad Schutte, manager of the wine industry body Vinpro’s viticultural consultation services.

The explanation for this is that a certain amount of wind during the budding and maturing stages in other areas contributed to minor sized berries, giving rise to lower juice salvages.

“Smaller berries also have greater flavour and colour concentrations, which will be reflected in exceptional quality in the wines,” he says.

Speaking on their site nedurburg.com, Nederburg is also expected to deliver exceptional wines.

Nederburg managing director Niel Groenewald believes the burden imposed by the vintage has been rewarded by vigorous, well-proportioned fruit with intense flavours.

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