Vines now fine after wet weather worries

Staff at South Staffordshire's award-winning Halfpenny Green Vineyard feared the very worst for the grapes after the cold, wet weather this year.

But after a spell of warmer conditions, all 40,000 vines at the popular site are blooming and almost ready to be picked – just in time for harvest season which starts next month.

Halfpenny Green is the largest vineyard in the Midlands and rivals some of the top wine makers across the whole of the UK.

And this year owner Clive Vickers is gearing up for his busiest year since opening almost 30 years ago.

Production at the site is doubling from September, with 100,000 bottles of wine expected to be produced, up from around 50,000.

Mr Vickers said despite record rainfall, the grape crop this year was looking "as healthy as ever" after a spell of dry, warmer weather.

He said: "It has been challenging this year with the changeable weather. We've had a lot of rain which isn't good for the vines.

"The flowers on the vines could not bloom. But it's just come good now. With the weather getting noticeably better, it is now ideal conditions for the grapes. If all goes well we'll be picking in mid-September."

Too much rain during the summer months can cause grey rot and other diseases to the vines.

Mr Vickers, aged 45, who runs the vineyard with his father Martin, has taken on an extra pair of hands in experienced wine maker Kieron Atkinson and is expanding the size of the business.

Mr Vickers said: "It's a really exciting time for us. We'll be having double the amount of tanks and we'll be able to produce around 100,000 bottles of wine which is about double what we can do now.

"There is demand there and we want to push the business forward."

From mid-September, the grapes will be picked by a team of volunteers who give up their time to pluck all the different varieties. The grapes are then put into a de-stalking machine, before they are pressed and the juice is put into tanks. After that the fermentation process begins, when yeast and sugar is added. The wine is then filtered to get rid of any bits and bottled around March or April.

Between now and September all the machinery will be cleaned and sterilised, ready for the grapes.

Mr Vickers has submitted plans to South Staffordshire District Council for a £100,000 expansion to the 6,000 sq ft winery, so it can produce even more bottles of its white, red, rose and sparkling wine varieties.

Earlier this month, a trio of the vineyard's white wines won national awards from the United Kingdom Vineyards Association.Mr Vickers planted the first vines with his father in 1983. A falconry centre and petting zoo both opened at the site in Bobbington earlier this year.

There is also a tearoom, restaurant, shop, deli, craft centre and fishing lake for visitors.

In the past three years Halfpenny Green has increased the size of its vineyards to 30 acres.

Three staff work in the winery and more are taken on over the harvest season.

Mr Atkinson said: "Not only will we be able to produce more wine, but also the quality will be even better with the new machines."