Viticulture

Nestled at the foot of the mountain after which it is named.

A premier region

Waveren lies in the centre of Tulbagh valley and most of its 350 hectares can be cultivated. The Klein Berg River that forms the farm’s western border is flanked by deep hydromorphic sandy alluvial soils and hydromorphic sandy loam duplex soils; these run into boulder beds deposited millennia ago when the river was considerably larger than today. Due to the fertility of the soils, we do not plant vineyards here; but rather olive and fruit orchards instead.

The vineyards found on Waveren are planted on the mid-valley medium-deep soils that have developed from Pre-Cambrian age Malmesbury shale. The aspect is moderate east with an average height of 160 to 185 meters above sea level. The rainfall is 500 – 600 mm per year, mostly from June to September. The general wind direction is southeast, providing most of the cooling effect in the afternoons. The wind velocity is generally more intense than against the mountain but of shorter duration.

Unique diversity of terroir

We are fortunate in that Saronsberg as a farm consists of two portions (Waveren and Welgegund) that stretch from the middle of the valley up to Saronsberg mountain. The two furthest points suited to viticulture are about four kilometres apart from one another and are situated in two different micro-climates. Owing to these differences we have set upon replanting much of the existing vineyards, utilising the different micro-climates to their full potential to produce unique terroir-driven wines.

Saronsberg’s soils can be broadly classified into three categories depending on their location:

Mountain foot slopes (Welgegund farm against Saronsberg mountain)
Deposited boulder beds and sandy-loam alluvial soils (Waveren farm around the Klein Berg River); and
Mid-valley shales (Waveren farm towards the centre of the Tulbagh valley)

Usually, the wines produced from the Welgegund vineyards have more floral notes with enhanced elegance. These wines form the foundation of our Provenance range and also serve as blending components in our Saronsberg range.

The backbone of the Saronsberg range

The grapes from Waveren form the backbone of the Saronsberg range as we get more concentrated colour and flavour with a firm tannin structure.

Initially, a complete soil and temperature analysis of all the potential vineyard sites was done on both farms to determine their suitability for grape production. This information was used to decide which cultivars, clones and rootstock combinations were to be planted on the specific sites to maximise grape quality.

We utilise these differences in soil, temperature conditions and clone/rootstock combinations between the two farms to produce wines with varying flavour profiles, which provides us with more blending options. The resulting wines have a broader, layered flavour profile with more depth. The soils selected had similar characteristics, such as good drainage, good water retention, good aeration and inducing moderate vigour.

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Access to the valley is only possible from the open southern side, which allows the prevailing south-eastern summer wind to generate airflow and cool down the valley.

Cooler air generated by cold air flowing down the surrounding mountains at night also accumulates on the valley floor, effectively trapping the cold air. Situated 80 km off the Atlantic coast, the valley’s climate is generally continental, enjoying Mediterranean summers and cold, wet winters. Depending on where you find yourself in the Tulbagh Valley, you will encounter different terroir units, mainly due to the elevation, aspect, and slope variations of the mountains and valley floor.

THE TULBAGH VALLEY IS

situated in the Western Cape province 120km north-east of Cape Town. Shaped like an inverted horse-shoe, it is surrounded by mountains on three sides: flanked to the east by the Witzenberg mountains, capped by the Groot Winterhoek range on the northern side and to the west lies the Obiqua range, of which Saronsberg mountain forms a part.