Delegat's Wine Estate New Zealand

Viticulture at Delegat's Wine Estate


Aden Brock
 

Our philosophy is one of balance. A balance between the vine and the natural harmony of New Zealand's uniquely influenced maritime climate and ancient glacial riverbed soils. The expression of the vineyard is in the quality of the fruit and the flavour profiles that result. To achieve this we embrace the science and technology of sustainable viticulture at each stage of the growing season and care for each vineyard and vineyard block individually."

Aden Brock, GENERAL MANAGER, VITICULTURE

At Delegat’s Wine Estate we are committed to sustainable viticulture. We have strategies in place to ensure that our practices reflect this commitment, which include:

An annual management plan for each vineyard block. This involves the blocks being rated and 'scored' against a benchmark. Every three months each block is formally assessed and re-forecasted. We also conduct regular seasonal audits.
Constant reviews of the clonal performance, irrigation, trellising systems, vine health and canopy management of each block.
Careful training and pruning of our vines to achieve a balance between growth and regular yield.
Feedback from our winemakers to the viticultural team on every individual batch of grapes.
On-going education and investment in the latest management systems and mechanization.

Our Four Principles for Sustainable Viticulture

1. What's good for the vineyard and the growing of premium quality grapes, must also be good for the environment. We work in harmony with nature. 
   
2. Continuous improvement of our viticultural practices and management, through an on-going commitment to certified industry training courses and investment in our own research and development programme. 
   
3. Modern record keeping and management systems for each of our vineyards. Each vineyard has its own active management plan. 
   
4. Finding, training and helping to develop a world-class team of viticultural professionals. Our innovative 'Pathways to the Future' Graduate Development Programme is fundamental to this vision.