The Winery of Good Hope

The Winery of Good Hope is more than just a winery. It’s an approach. An alternative way of thinking, being and doing. Yes, you will find them in the prestigious wine-making region of Stellenbosch, in South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope. But they aren’t like other wine producers. Why? Because they’re not into all the flashy stuff that’s often associated with the wine industry. The goal is to make quality wine with a conscience. Succeeding the values from their parent brand Radford Dale, they make great wines using traditional, natural viticultural and winemaking methods.

• They focus on vine health and the development of the plant’s own immunity, they’ve been able to cut the number of disease-fighting chemicals, pesticides and additives to an absolute stand-out minimum.

• Bug-friendly vineyard! Bigs should always form part of the ecosystem (as opposed to the vast monocultures that have trademarked commercial farming for decades). That’s why its crucial to promote beneficial microorganisms and, in so doing, decrease the effect of nasty ones.

• Where the local wildlife (mostly buck) have been guilty of “sampling” the grapes, they’ve placed dog fur (from grooming salons) on poles and wires in the vineyards. The smell of the fur scares the buck away and prevents any damage to the vines and grapes. WHAT!

• For the birds. Rodents have a habit of digging their burrows under the roots of vines, and can cause a lot of damage. Instead of using poison, they installed perching posts for birds of prey (especially jackal buzzards, fish eagles and owls). This gives them an ideal vantage point to watch over the vineyards and keep them rodent-free. It works a treat.

• Compost! They’ve implemented a composting programme that’s gradually replaced the need for fertiliser – although it’ll take time to realize its full potential. Meanwhile, they’ve been studying selected strains of fungus that form a mutualistic association with the roots of our vines, enlarging the usable surface area of these root systems. This will improve the uptake of water, as well as nutrients like phosphorus and nitrogen.

All naturally.They’re also fully accredited for environmental, ethical, and social-upliftment practices. It’s easy to say you’re environmentally friendly or socially responsible. But unless you open yourself up to the critical scrutiny of an independent accreditation agency or auditor, how can anyone be sure that you’re walking the ethical-winery walk?

To prove that they are, they set targets in four critical non-business areas: the environment, ethics, social upliftment and B-BEEE. Click on the links to find out more! Some of these topics are becoming trendy, and are being used in a tokenistic fashion to sell wine, but not them. They'll stick to these principles when the next vogue appears and the less serene move on to greener pastures. That’s why Radford Dale is a founding member of Premium Independent Wineries Of South Africa (PIWOSA), which possesses the gold-standard ethics charter in today’s industry.

That’s why they call themselves The Winery of Good Hope.