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12 BUSINESS & FINANCE maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 14 AUGUST 2013 The vine intervention JEAN PIERRE CASSAR visits the Maria Rosa Wine Estate in Mriehel and speaks to its operations manager, Roland Cassar I would have never thought that just a few metres away from the hustle and bustle and traffic of Mriehel bypass stand 4.2 hectares of peace, tranquillity and pure beauty. Maria Rosa Wine Estate is a relatively new winery producing organic red wine, and they are planning to produce white wine from red grapes, in the near future. Roland Cassar, the operations manager and son-in-law of Maria Rosa's landowner Joe Fenech, welcomes me in the winery a few weeks before the harvesting starts. "Maria Rosa was named after my mother-in-law," he said, adding, "This is not a wine factory, but a wine estate". The winery, initially started with the production of red wine, and prides itself on the different and original factors which contribute to the wine's unique tastes. Their varieties being Cabarnet Sauvignon, Syrah and Sirakużan, from the range 'Sarosa', old Maltese for 'Sinjura Roża'. In addition to this range, Maria Rosa are soon releasing the Riserva range, after being stored in barrells for 24 months and in bottles for around a year, leading to a different taste and result. These are the Sarosa Cabarnet Sauvignon Riserva, Sarosa Syrah Riserva and Poultry among the vineyards Sarosa Sirakużan Riserva. "The winery is in the vineyards and this is a great advantage as it strongly minimises the time it takes to transport the grapes to the winery," Cassar explains, as he speaks about the importance of a short timespan for not allowing oxidisation before the grapes are juiced. Cassar's passion for the work is evident: he reassures me at that all their vines receive individual attention. Cassar eliminates all the pesticides, herbicides and insectides from his fields, ensuring that everything is natural. In order to scare away birds from eating the fruit, Cassar uses silver ribbons which are reused every year in order to deduct the consumption of plastic and extra expenses. He explains how once, when at home, he saw his pet duck eating a snail, which led him to put a number of ducks, hens and turkeys on the farm, so they can eat the insects and harmful organisms without introducing artificial products to his land. He also says that he uses their waste as a natural fertiliser, as this prevents the use of artificial chemicals in the production of the wine and also in the watertable. After our interview is over, I step Roland Cassar with the Italian consultant Dr Ennio Guliotta out and see that the poultry lingering around the fields have been given several basins of water, which will certainly not go unappreciated in the August heat. There is also Speranza Rosè, which took its name from the wife of Cassar, daughter of the owner. He speaks about their future project Vineyards ready to be harvested in the following weeks of being the first winery in Malta to produce white wine from red grapes. Another interesting factor is that the vines are only supplied with enough amount of water to live. "We do not want the grapes to appear bigger, we want them to taste better," Cassar says, explaining that too much watering can cause the grape to dilute and lose its natural taste. This is one of the faults common in the wine industry. Excessive water will also reduce the amount of sugars in the fruit, causing slower fermentation and hence compromising the excellency of the final result. "To love this job, you have to love the soil itself," are Cassar's exact words when speaks about the hard work and dedication this job demands, as he explains the process involved from the planting or the vine to the bottling. Starting with the first pruning in January, the year of the vine goes into a 'green pruning' stage in May which, as Cassar explains to me, is when certain branches are eliminated from the main trunk leaving the strongest branches, hence which will produce the most fruit and those closest to the main trunk. The harvesting will take place at the end of August or beginning of September. Maria Rosa Wine Estate organises wine-tasting tours, during which visitors can step into the winery, the vineyards and the laboratories and get a full explanation about the process. One can book as a group and end the tour with some winetasting. On a personal note, I suggest you to try out this organically produced wine. It simply tastes di-vine. For more information, search for 'Maria Rosa Wine Estate' on Facebook