Lazanou Organic Vineyards

Josef Lazarus and Candice Stephanou bought the farm in May 2002 when it was operating as a wholesale indigenous plant nursery. During the next few years the farm was converted into an organic wine farm. Lazanou Organic Vineyards is one of the smallest wine farms in South Africa. The full extent of the farm is 8.48 hectares, of which 5.54 hectares are under vineyards. The rest of the farm includes a cow and sheep pasture, a few small olive groves, a fruit orchard, an earth dam, a bird sanctuary, various buildings and most importantly a number of biodiversity zones.

Lazanou Organic Vineyards is Certified Organic by EcoCert against the Europian Union (Regulation 834/2007) organic standards for crop production and wine processing. The farm and cellar is audited every year to ensure that these standards are maintained. Biodiversity zones are created on the farm to encourage plant diversity and to attract natural predators to combat pests and diseases within the vineyards. No herbicides, pesticides or chemical fertilizers are used on the farm. The soils are continuously improved through extensive composting, mulching and planting of nitrogen fixing cover crops (green manuring) during the winter months. Compost is produced on the farm using our own cow manure, earthworms and organic materials from the farm. Snails are controlled by our ducks and chickens.

Lazanou Organic Vineyards is more than an award winning wine farm. It is a way of life where owners Josef Lazarus and Candice Stephanou and their two children Noah and Hannah endeavour to live a relatively self-sustainable life style. Their Jersey cow produces the milk that is use to make butter and cheese. Off springs from their cow, sheep, ducks, chickens and wild guinea fowl, keeps the freezer filled with meat for the family and farm workers. Table olives and olive oil is produced from their own olive trees and honey from their four beehives while the extensive vegetable garden produces most of their veggies all of which is shared with guests at their popular Open Days at Lazanou Organic Vineyards.

Corporate Social Investment (CSI) has become a major marketing tool / ploy for many companies including wine farms. Gone are the days when companies just did ‘good’ because they were ‘good’, without wearing their ‘goodness’ on their sleeve for everyone to see. Given the small size of Lazanou Organic Vineyards, we unfortunately just do not have the financial resources to buy ‘goodness’. However, apart from the fact that our four employees earn an above average wage and that we share the organic produce of the farm with them, the past and current life’s work of Lazanou Organic Vineyard’s owner Josef Lazarus, has been, and still is, dedicated to contributing to society and improving the lives of others.