A look back at projects we focus on in 2021
After a truly turbulent year, which in many ways forced us to revisit our business model, we had a time of much change and innovation. As a result, we started 2021 by sharing the following motto with our team – 2021 is the year in which innovation becomes implementation. In this blog we take a look at what projects we focused on for 2021. This includes sustainable farming practices, our wine club and promoting Saxenburg Moments.
Solidifying Our Commitment to Sustainable Farming Practices
At Saxenburg we have realised the importance of working with our environment, rather than against it. This has inspired us to look for ways to improve our approach to farming and to challenge ourselves to farm more in tune with nature and, in so doing, becoming more sustainable. The first step in any sustainable approach is to improve soil health. Traditional farming methods, that focuses on monoculture cultivation, are overly reliant on herbicides and ploughing which is very detrimental to soil health, as it breaks downs soil structure and kills all the vital microbial life in the soil. To counter this, we have planted a mixture of cover crops in every row of our vineyards, this not only breaks the monoculture cycle and in so doing ensuring a more natural environment, but it also enables us to use less herbicides as the cover crops are natural weed suppressants. Furthermore, the roots of the cover crops create the perfect environment for beneficial microbial life to flourish and in so doing, it quite literally brings the soil back to life. Once the cover crop dies in summer, the material that is left acts as a natural mulch – lessening evaporation and adding organic matter to the soil. Over time, this will ensure our soils are healthy, which will translate in healthier vineyards, that needs fewer external inputs.
Expanding on our replanting programe
Our team is excited for the new Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards, which shows a promising start for many harvests to come. To start this fruitful process, we packed a layer of mulch in our new In 2021 we planted a new 2.3-hectare block of Cabernet Sauvignon. This forms part of our long-term planting program, which is a vital part in the long-term strategy for the farm. This special block is planted on a West-facing slope, at 170m elevation, in a gravel and clay based decomposed granite soil. We have carefully selected two clones (CS46 and CS338), which are known for their superior quality, and has a proven track record of producing award-winning wines. Even though we will only get to taste the first fruit in 3 to 4 years, we are extremely excited for what this block will bring in the future.
Creating an unique offering to our Wine Club members
We are passionate about creating a unique offering that rewards our most loyal customers and allows us to grow our Saxenburg community. Our Wine Club has been a focused point for us this year, and to focus on the uniqueness of our offering. Wine Club members can look forward to a curated case filled with older and new vintages (with the Chardonnay 2020 as a pre-release). We’ve also exclusively released our Family Series 2nd Generation Syrah 2020 and Winemaker’s Blend (red) to our wine club members, perfect to enjoy now or to keep for later. Our members can also enjoy benefits that range from unique experiences to personal discounts. We are proud to announce that our Family Series 2nd Generation Syrah 2020 has received a 95 rating from Christian Eedes, Winemag.
Sharing Saxenburg Moments with our community
We continuously create thought-provoking and elegant wines that are enjoyed by Saxenburgers around the world. Seeing our customers sharing their Saxenburg moments is our biggest reward. We also focused on creating educational and entertaining content for our community to learn from and enjoy reading about. As part of this project, we created a #SaxenburgMoments campaigns that we used to encourage all wine lovers to use when enjoying our wines. The response has been mindblowing and humble and we are quite excited for what our community will share with us in the new year.
We can’t wait for what is in store for us in 2022. From the Saxenburg family, we would like to thank you for your loyal support throughout the year. We hope to share many more with you in the New Year.
