A few decades ago, Nicky Krone turned accepted practice upside-down at his family wine estate, Twee Jonge Gezellen and started a tradition of his own. By harvesting his entire crop at night, he realised he could retain the finer, more subtle qualities of the grapes. Tests proved that the grapes picked in the cool of the night retain more of everything than grapes picked from the same vine in the middle of the day. Temperatures at night can be as low as 11°C which is in sharp contrast to temperatures during the middle of the day which can be debilitating for the humans, never mind the grapes!

This busy and critical harvest time has become something of a joyous festival, producing an atmosphere which the Krone family believe transfers itself into every bottle of their Krone Sparkling Wines.

The Estate is the second oldest family-owned wine estate in South Africa, having been in the family since 1710, and has always been synonymous with terms such as pioneering and ground-breaking - the first underground sparkling wine cellar in Africa, first to place an estates’ name on a wine label in South Africa, the late NC Krone was the first to introduce cold-fermentation in the Southern Hemisphere and the first to introduce the night harvesting concept in the world!

Twee Jonge Gezellen is home to THE HOUSE OF KRONE Methode Cap Classic sparkling wine, their award winning Krone Borealis being named after a dainty star constellation.

It is appropriate that all who share the Krone family's love for life and bubbly should be able to share in the harvest festivities and 'taste' their shining stars at this years’ night harvest dinners. Join them for a fun-filled evening with Krone MCC sparkling wines. Enjoy a three course dinner, cellar tour with the winemaker and, later, take a ride on the 'starlight express' to experience how the grapes are picked in the cool of the night.

Harvest Dinners will be hosted on 21st, 22nd, 28th, 29th January and 4th, 5th February 2009. The cost per person is R300.

For further information or to make a reservation please contact:

Luke Krone
Tel: 023 2300 680
Email: luke@tjg.co.za
Website: www.houseofkrone.co.za