Move over ruby and salmon: green is the colour of wine on World Environment Day!

World Environment Day is June 5, 2014. While we tend to think ‘solar energy’ and ‘recycling’ when it comes to making our earth a greener place, there are local wine estates that are taking great green strides (or in the case of Theuniskraal, small waddles) in the vineyards.

One of Tulbagh’s best-known wine farms has swopped snail bait for ducks, which happen to have a penchant for eating pesky snails.

A flock of over 200 free-ranging ducks patrol Theuniskraal’s 140 ha of vineyards by day, where they forage and consume the snail population with gusto. The mechanical skills of brothers Flippie and Wagner Jordaan were put to task in designing and successfully producing an incubator from a discarded refrigerator. The cleverly modified fridge, complete with tilting egg boxes to emulate the turning of the eggs by the mother duck, is testament to their enthusiasm and commitment to the environment.

Once hatched, the ducklings are kept safely in a shed and taught how to seek out food and drink, until they are old enough to join the duck patrol. They are then released from the pen each morning and quickly learn to follow the flock and waddle into the vineyards, or hitch a lift on the farm tractor and trailer to the more distant vineyards. Each evening they head for home and safety – a perfectly symbiotic arrangement!

The determined duck patrol is just one of Theuniskraal’s environmentally friendly farming practices, which work seamlessly with high technology irrigation, weather forecasting and fertilisation systems to bring out the best in each vintage. Theuniskraal is also a member of the Biodiversity and Wine Initiative (BWI). Pair the Theuniskraal Bouquet Blanc 2013 with a Honey Ash Cake and the Lomond Merlot 2011 with a delicious winter warming Oxtail casserole – perfect winter comfort food. Both wines are available nationally at various outlets including Tops Spar, Checkers and Pick n Pay.