Wijngaard Hof van 't Hogeland
“You really feel as though you’re in France, in the Jura. A gently sloping south-facing hillside, with rows of grapevines stretching out in orderly lines. This vineyard is more organic than organic. I don’t use anything at all – not a single pesticide.”
Have a look now
In reality, we are standing on the Groot Maarslag mound, between Schouwerzijl and Mensingeweer. Elma Middel is the winegrower, wearing a straw hat and …
In reality, we are standing on the Groot Maarslag mound, between Schouwerzijl and Mensingeweer. Elma Middel is the winegrower, wearing a straw hat and with pruning shears in a sheath strapped to her waist. The Hof van ’t Hogeland vineyard was established in 2013. “It actually started with the earthquake problem,” she says with a touch of irony. “The house and barn turned out to be unsellable, so you think: roll up your sleeves, what else can I do with them?” So she got her hands dirty in the clay.On the slope, there are over 2,200 vines spread across three-quarters of a hectare. That’s enough for around 3,000 bottles a year. About two-thirds are the Solaris variety and the rest is Johanniter. “The Solaris is quite resistant to mildew and grows as far north as Stockholm: so it’s bound to work here! I don’t want to use pesticides, and so far it hasn’t been necessary: there’s always a breeze so close to the Wadden Sea, and it turns out that good canopy management goes a long way. Honestly, you can actually smell when wine has been treated with sulphur. The Johanniter grape ripens a month later than the Solaris. We make dry white wines from both, and the plan was to blend them to give the Solaris a bit more bite. But they each turn out to have such lovely qualities that they’ll be bottled separately.”
“This vineyard is actually more organic than organic. So far, I haven’t even used any plant protection products permitted in organic farming. The only thing I add is sometimes a bit of manure from the horses. The ducks keep the snails at bay. The mown grass enriches the soil. Without the SKAL quality mark, you’re not allowed to use the word ‘organic’: we call the wine ‘pure – fresh – dry’,” says the winegrower. She doesn’t process the grapes herself: “That’s a speciality in its own right. I have this done by a professional winemaker: Neerlands Wijnmakerij in Bentelo. The beautiful labels (featuring the ducks) were designed by Frank Verhulst from Groningen. A fine product deserves a fitting look.”
“I focus on the finer restaurants in the region and a few in the city. Our 2016 vintage is even served at Onder de Linden in Aduard! Enthusiastic customers include Het Kleine Oestertje in Oldehove, Andre Dokter in Briltil, Het Kerkje Wetsinghe and the Scandinavian Village on Lake Paterswoldse Meer: their guests really do keep coming back for it. B&B Batenborg in Winsum offers the wine to guests staying overnight. Retail outlets for private customers include Gall&Gall in Winsum, Hein Post in Groningen, and the new Foodmarkt in the Euroborg will also be selling our Solaris from 2019. Several companies have already selected the wine for their Christmas hampers. Last November, the 2017 vintage was completely sold out, but the promising 2018 vintage will be available from May. The retail price for a bottle is around 17 euros. Visits to the vineyard are by appointment only."
Have a chat with a winegrower and you’re morally and practically obliged to have a taste, to sample it. Blimey, that Solaris is absolute bliss, as if a little angel were peeing on your tongue. The wine coats your tongue with an oily layer, as it were. The fruitiness of apples and pears is strikingly present. With a walnut aftertaste. If only I’d had a piece of Franche-Comté cheese to hand…