The wine is as good as the grape and the grape is as good as the plant and soil it grows in. Next is the hand of a good wine-maker.
At Chateau d'Ori the first crop of its newly planted saplings were prematurely sniped out in order to strengthen the vines and to harvest a qualitatively better yield the following year. Also a high quality yield was ensured by growing only an optimum amount of berries on each vine maintaining a certain leaves-to-berries ratio. Correct planting followed by proper tending of the vines through out the year is essential for producing quality berries. At Chateau d'Ori rows of vines are planted, in designated plots, in the north-south direction to expose them to optimum sunlight which is essential for both the plant and the growth of healthy grapes. New grafts are generally planted between November and February. With proper care and tending the vines can yield grapes by the following year. The vines require two pruning during the year. The first pruning is carried out within weeks of the annual harvest. At Chateau d'Ori the second pruning is carried out in September-October. Within days new leaves begin to sprout on the vines and with that inflorescence begin to form at various axils, and the vineyard is once again green and lush. The second pruning is critical. The method employed in pruning will determine the quantity or the quality of the yield. Larger the quantity lesser the quality. Also inducing the plant to produce more berries will generally affect the health of the plant and render it incapable of producing grapes with the right content of sugar and acidity so essential for producing a good wine. At Chateau d'Ori emphasis is laid on ensuring that limited number of quality bunches thrive per vines. This is the single most important reason why world over "Estate Bottled" wines are synonymous with better wines than wines made from grapes produced by 'contract farmers'. Typically farmers will sell their produce by weight. Therefore they have no incentive to limit their produce and will find ways to increase production in order to maximize profits. All Chateau d'Ori wines are produced from grapes from its own vineyards.
Some 120 days after the second pruning the grapes mature and ripen and are ready for harvesting. The harvesting, cleaning and sorting of the grapes is a manual process while the de-stemming of the berries is carried out automatically before crushing and the following wine making process.
