The year 2008 has seen us move towards serious marketing of our wines. Breaking into a highly competitive market with an unknown label has been a challenging task.
To achieve the exposure we need we attended a number of wine shows in the Western Cape, including Winex and Cape Wine 2008. The latter being the International show case for South African wines. All good exposure and experience in the pursuit of persuading wine lovers to buy our wine!
Cellar matters
During all this marketing activity, the 2008 vintage has been carefully nurtured in the cellar. The wine is coming along beautifully, portraying what is now becoming the Belfield signature; soft tannins, lovely colour and fruity flavours.
A new wine-making cycle will be upon us very soon, so we will be making room for the new infant by bottling the 2008 in January. Our attention is now turning towards choosing the oak barrels that will incubate our new offspring in the next season.
In the vineyards
It was a long, cold and very wet winter. Our gravelly Ironstone soil, or “Koffie klip”, drained well and the rain was not detrimental to the vines. But, enough is enough, let’s have some summer sun and no rain for a while!
The vines are growing very vigorously and we want to slow them down to achieve the good balance between vegetative growth and grape crop, required for the production of premium wine.
Belfield’s new horizons…
An essential component of our marketing endeavours is the overseas market. We have been making great progress here, with Canadataking the lead. Thanks to our agent, who took the time to visit Belfield, and has been relentless and patient in her determination to import our wine into Toronto, we are on the brink of shipping the first consignment.
We are also nearly ready to ship wine to our agent in Boston, USA. He has also shown persistence and determination to get our wine onto USA shelves.
Finally, we have been approached by an agent in Scotland to reserve 2006 wines for that destination.
Then there was the shipment to an exclusive chateau hotel in France earlier this year. Nice to think that our wine is appreciated in the country that is regarded as the bench mark against which the whole world measures itself!
Trumpets and accolades
Platter’s South African Wines 2009 – We have just heard that our ratings for our 2006 vintage, which we have been selling since the beginning of this year is as follows:
2006 Magnifica: ««««¶ Four and a half stars
2006 Blend: «««« Four stars
Our 4½ stars for our 2006 Magnifica (Cabernet Sauvignon), follows on from the same rating achieved for our 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon.
Crush 2009 – We are honoured to have Belfield’s Magnifica listed in Michael Olivier’s personalised wine guide. This little book, which is published annually, is a wonderfully entertaining and sensationally descriptive reference for wine lovers. Do yourself a flavour and visit his website if you are serious about food and wine: www.noshnews.co.za.
Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Wine Book 2009 – Hugh Johnson is considered to be the world’s favourite wine writer. He mentions Belfield’s Magnifica in the South African section, called “From the Nursery”. His description, “Belfield, family label from Elgin; Leafy, lovely Cabernets and Bordeaux red.”
Wine Magazine – October 2008 – Giorgio Nava, owner and executive chef at 95 Keerom Street, paired our Magnifica Cabernet with a Springbok Casseruola. “Molto bono” is how he summed up the wine, adding, “I think it’s a fantastic wine – it has a lightness and freshness about it, and I particularly like the well-balanced tannins and alcohol. I think it is a very versatile food match. You can drink it with many different types of food, ranging from delicate to very rich…”
And what about our 2007 wine?
We believe this wine is also following in the wine steps of its earlier siblings, in terms of character and quality. The plan is to allow it more time in the bottle, prior to releasing it in February or March.
Availability of our 2006 wine.
Interest in this wine has gathered momentum recently, and, especially the Magnifica is now in short supply. I must mention this as the orders in the pipeline would clean us out.
Whilst the stocks of the Blend are larger, this could also happen with this wine.
And of course………..prices will have to rise in January! (This sales pitch sounds familiar doesn’t it?)
Snippets from here and there…
“Successful people drink more wine”. Source: Decanter.
Belfield’s version, “Drink more Belfield wine to become successful”!
“ Red wine heart benefits no different to other alcohols” Source: Beverage Daily
Belfield’s comment, “Disregard this research”.
“ High prices make wine taste better” Source: Times on line.
That’s why our prices have to rise; we want you to enjoy our wine more.
Again a big thank you to Mel, Al and Jen, for putting up with my endless babbling on about Belfield wine. Also to Lawrence and his team, and of course to Paul Wallace and Mark Carmichael Green for getting us as far as we have come!
Mike and the Belfield Team
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“Wine is bottled poetry” Robert Louis Stevenson.
Did you know that there’s an anti-aging weapon and it doesn’t involve injection or wonder cream? There’s no nipping or tucking either instead all you need is your perfect glass of wine. Drinking a glass of wine a day is the single most important thing that you can do to keep healthy.
Posted by: sanfran wine lover | December 28, 2011 at 03:46 AM