About Stellar Winery
Stellar Winery is situated in the Lower Olifants River Valley in a semi-arid area known as Namaqualand, named after the nomadic Nama people who were its original inhabitants. The magnificent cosmic displays in the night sky gives the winery its name.
Stellar's reputation is built on innovative winemaking, eco-friendly farming and production and fairly traded wines. The first vintage from organically grown grapes was released in 2001 and since then the cellar's output has grown to over 2 million bottles a year. Stellar Winery is the number 1 organic wine brand in the UK and we are an Ethical Consumer Best Buy.
A number of independent farms supply the winery with organic, fairly traded grapes, making up the Stellar Winery Multi-Estate. The farms are situated in the Lower Olifants River Valley, from Trawal in the south through to Koekenaap, close to the mouth of the Olifants River on the Atlantic coast.
Stellar Winery is co-owned by the Stellar Empowerment Trust, the benficiaries of which are the workers at the winery and on the farms of the Multi-Estate.
Organic viticulture and organic wines
Organic refers to a system of farming that maintains and replenishes the fertility of the soil. The grapes are grown without the use of chemical pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or fertilizers. Only compost and organic materials are used, with indigenous vegetation for mulching.
Weeds and pests are controlled using environmentally sound practices that support the health of our planet and ultimately our own well being. In the cellar the maximum allowable quantity of sulphur dioxide is half that of the maximum permitted for conventional wines, and chemicals are forbidden.
Wines made from organically grown grapes contain a small quantity of permitted sulphur dioxide preservative. True organic wines are considered to be those made from organically grown grapes and without added sulphur dioxide. Stellar Winery produces both types of wine. Wines without added sulphites are available in the Stellar Organics No Added Sulphur label.
Stellar Winery is certified for organic viticulture and production by Ecocert and USDA, which ensures that criteria for organic agriculture and production are strictly adhered to. Our Organic Certification number is: CU 021 094.
Brands
Stellar products are sold in the United Kingdom, Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, France, Sweden, Denmark, Canada, the United States and South Africa.
The main Stellar wine brands are Stellar Organics, Sensory Collection, The River's End, Live-a-Little, Stellar Organics No Added Sulphur, and Running Duck. We have also developed a number of parallel brands for our various markets abroad. These include Moonlight Organics, Natural Star, African Star, Ithemba and Firefly.
Stellar Winery and fair trade
Fair trade principles and practices are part of the foundation of the business and Stellar has been certified as a fair trade producer since 2004. Our certifier is the Fair for Life programme of the highly-respected Ecocert.