THE IONA PHENOMENON
The combination of the short distance from the freezing Atlantic Ocean and the rapid increase in altitude causes the prevailing South East wind to roll across the vines, forming misty clouds that blanket the farm on warm days. This protects the grapes from the African sun – allowing filtered sunlight into the canopy – resulting in slow, even, optimum ripeness with perfect acidity and flavour development at moderate alcohol levels.
We own and farm all our vineyards as we believe truly great wines are grown and farmed with meticulous knowledge and attention to detail. Technology is used to monitor water stress, temperature fluctuations, radiation and photosynthesis levels and soil variations to
effectively manage and bring our vineyards into balance. Composting, physical weed removal, use of beneficial insects and bacteria, raptor poles, vine collars, cover crops between the rows and ground covers below the vines are some of the sustainable
techniques we employ at Iona.
