Wine Quality Consultants The season was characterised by a relatively cool January and early February, with some extreme temperatures late February and March.
Some areas experienced problems with powdery mildew resulting in crop losses from 10% to almost 60%. The overall crop was 20 to 30% less in Stellenbosch with average levels in other wine producing areas.
Several grape varieties were harvested at sugars higher than 23 Balling, resulting in wines with alcohol levels of higher than 13.5 vol%. In general, all these wines will be full bodied with a long aging potential.
Wines made from grapes picked during the first part of the season had excellent acidity and pH levels, but those picked during the latter part of the season had relatively low acid and higher pH levels. Wine lovers may experience huge differences in the balance of the wines. Winemakers who corrected the acidity levels of their wines at the appropriate stage during production, will achieve better results with their wines.
Most wines shows good, typical flavour characteristics. Some very good and some relatively neutral Sauvignon Blanc wines were tasted while most red wines shows outstanding color and depth. Merlot was particular one of the stars in certain areas, and we can expect exceptionally good wines on the market after the maturation period.
The 2002 cellar season was a relatively quite and non-problematic winemaking experience for most of the winemakers. Very limited incidences of stuck fermentations or other problems were experienced. Malo-lactic fermentation took longer than usual in some wines, probably due to the higher alcohol levels. The bentonite requirement of most wines were low and clarification was not a problem.
We are looking forward to some excellent wines on the market.
