– Vintage 2015 –

After a late budding and changeable spring weather, blossoming began at the end of May. The hot and dry weather in June brought about a good and rapid flowering. Eighty millimetres of rain fell on the Saturday before Pentecost, which brought the vines the moisture that they badly needed. With the exception of a couple rainy days (30 mm of rain on 8 July) the summer can be described as ‘hot and dry’. Daytime temperatures ranging up to 37°C and nighttime temperatures of 25°C were the rule. Our vines withstood this hot period very well, and the fertilising greenery in every other vine row was adequately supplied with water. On the night of 17 August, rain fell in the amount of 25 litres per square metre, which was significant for the further development of the clusters and the way the fruit character was ultimately expressed. High-pressure weather systems persisted through the whole of the harvest period, and we could go easily from one vineyard site to the next, picking our grapes without anxiety or hurry.

In 2015 the Kollwentz Estate’s vineyards yielded beautifully ripened, small and perfectly healthy grapes – altogether the attributes of a great vintage.