#Harvest2022
Week One: Done and Dusted!

With the first week of harvest behind us, I thought it a fantastic opportunity to introduce you to one of our newer faces here at Fairview, Jaco Gerber, our new head viticulturist. Jaco joined us shortly after the conclusion of the 2021 harvest from Merwida outside Rawsonville, where he was responsible for farming around 375ha of vineyards, which is no small feat!

Jaco describes himself as a born and bred “Rawsonviller” with a passion for vines, people and the outdoors. After matriculating from HTS Drostdy in 2007, Jaco went to Elsenburg where he studied Viticulture and Pomology. Since graduating, he has been an active member of the wine industry for 12 years.

Jaco is married and has a daughter and spends most of his free time outdoors! “Ek hou van die buite lewe soos visvang, bike ry en jag, verskriklik baie. Adventurous stuff. En.. ek hou van ‘n uitdaging!”
He enjoys Chenin Blanc, which he believes comes out on top above any other cultivar, and the occasional brandy.

We asked Jaco for a short summary of his first official week of harvest at Fairview…

“2022 looks to be a really good year here at Fairview! We’ve seen good quality fruit, and really great quality juice in the cellar. I’m also happy to report that we haven’t had any vineyards diseases this year, so things are looking very good!

This week we started off with some Muscadel and Chenin Blanc destined for our La Beryl Blanc straw wine. We also finished harvesting all of the Verdelho and the early pickings of the Viognier component for the Fairview Brut. Just before the rains set in earlier this week, we started with a pocket of bush vine Pinotage that will be one of the components used for the Fairview Pinotage. After the rain, we’re hoping for a windy day or two and some heat to make sure the grapes get dry and in so doing avoiding any “suur vrot”. Then next week we’ll again be looking at Chenin Blanc, more of the bush vine Pinotage and some of the cultivars used in the Rose Quartz and Goats do Roam Rosé.

Sugars are climbing evenly which is good, but we do expect a bottle neck around the middle to end of harvest when everything will just ripen at once! Luckily, I like a challenge!”

In celebration of the end of the first week of harvest, we’re raising a glass of Fairview Pinotage paired with our double cream Camembert served on a farm cracker and drizzled with a Pinotage conserve. Stop by the Fairview Tasting Room to try out the pairing or make your own at home.

To LIFE…and #Harvest2022!