Iona Vineyards

The farm was named “IONA” after an island off the West Coast of Scotland. The first vineyards were planted in 1998 and initial research confirmed that Iona is one of South Africa’s coolest vineyards with harvesting times up to 2 months later than other wine producing areas. In a country where cool sites are precious, these vineyards are like gold. Our wines are highly rated, are available in top outlets around the world and we welcome visitors to the farm!

Our vineyards are situated around 420m above sea-level in Elgin. Altitude, proximity to the cold Atlantic Ocean, cool sea breezes, extensive orographic cloud cover, high humidity and varied, complex soils, makes it a unique vineyard site in South Africa.

The prevailing South Easterly winds during the growing and ripening season, push cold air up over the vineyards, contribute to making it one of the coolest vineyard sites in the country.

The benefit of cool climates is that the grape cluster stays connected to the vine for longer, achieving physiological ripeness more gradually at lower temperatures. Acid degradation is slow and delicate aromatic compounds are retained at lower sugar levels and consequently lower alcohols.