News

This month’s blog focuses on the frantic task of harvest prep. We chatted to winery and cellar door supernova Clare Butcher who filled us in on what we’re up to.

Right now Marcus, Adam and Jeanette are busy with canopy management - tucking much of this beautiful unruly growth into the foliage wires to make sure everything’s in place for the current phase: flowering, fruit set and ripening. Marcus explains a little more about what canopy management is in his latest blog post.

Our June focus is on the magic of compost and the important (and very satisfying) task of disbudding. We usually spread our recycled compost underneath the vines in the spring. Each vine gets approximately 25 kg around its base, which amounts to a layer about 10cm or 4 inches thick. The compost plays multiple roles - during the first year after spreading, there is a slow release of nutrients from the compost and a beneficial suppression of annual weed seed germination. In the second year, nitrogen take-up by the vines combined with increased soil micro bio activity gives a boost...

Adrian, our Managing Director & Winemaker, introduces two of our new release Pet Nats - Petulant Nature 2020 and Naturally Petulant 2020. How are the Pet Nats made?The Pet Nats are two of my favourite Westwell wines. The Petulant Nature is made with Ortega and the Naturally Petulant is made with Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay. We bottled both three quarters of the way through fermentation so that it finishes in bottle, trapping the CO2 to become lightly sparkling. Petulant Nature 2020, made with Ortega. Anything to look out for?Yes! Both can be a little temperamental when opening -...