ZAFA Wines

ZAFA Wines we ferment grapes into sparkling wine and each vintage is inspired by the fruit first.

utilizing ancestral farming practices ZAFA Wines honors the soil first and foremost as we proudly farm hybrid grapes at trout brook vineyard, located in hudson, wi. we farm & ferment grapes & other fruits into sparkling wine đŸŸđŸ§ƒ
current releases: a project by ZAFA: #1 #5 #9
**kingfermentedjuice

i love this because it shows exactly what regenerative farming can look like in practice.while a summer storm moved thro...
06/17/2026

i love this because it shows exactly what regenerative farming can look like in practice.

while a summer storm moved through, shepherd Bee from Hollyhock & Livestock found a way to keep the goats grazing, sheltered, and productive all at the same time.

with some thoughtful fencing and a good understanding of animal behavior, the herd was given access to the edge habitat and fruit tree areas where grazing was needed anyway. the goats stayed protected, the vegetation stayed managed, and the work continued.

that’s the thing about good stewardship. it isn’t forcing a system. it’s observing what’s in front of you and finding solutions that benefit the land, the animals, and the people caring for both.

a shoutout to Bee for the creativity, care, and management that makes this kind of grazing possible.

two birds, one stone. or maybe more accurately
 a few goats, a storm, and a very good shepherd. 🐐

alot of people hear us say “no spray” and assume we mean nothing ever gets applied in the vineyard.that’s not what we me...
06/10/2026

alot of people hear us say “no spray” and assume we mean nothing ever gets applied in the vineyard.

that’s not what we mean.

what we mean is that we do not rely on the conventional synthetic herbicide, insecticide, and fungicide programs that have become standard in much of modern agriculture.

instead, we farm beyond organic, focusing first on soil health, biodiversity, ecosystem function, and the overall resilience of the vineyard.

that doesn’t mean we never intervene. it means we choose our interventions differently.

pictured here are horsetail tea (BD 508) and horn silica (BD 501), preparations used in biodynamic farming. horsetail is traditionally used to support plants during periods of excess moisture, while horn silica is applied in very small amounts to support the plant’s relationship with light and photosynthesis.

our goal is not simply to react to problems. it is to build a vineyard ecosystem that is healthier, more balanced, and more resilient over time.

healthy soil. diverse biology. thoughtful stewardship.

that is what we mean when we say we farm beyond organic.

what a little bit of rain can do.last week we were just beginning to see bud break across the vineyard. now shoots are p...
05/19/2026

what a little bit of rain can do.

last week we were just beginning to see bud break across the vineyard. now shoots are pushing fast and the first tiny clusters are already showing themselves.

the 2026 growing season is here.

📾 by lead land steward

this week was all hands on deck.and classic as the old yiddish proverb says:“men tracht, un gott lacht”man plans and God...
05/16/2026

this week was all hands on deck.

and classic as the old yiddish proverb says:
“men tracht, un gott lacht”
man plans and God laughs.

the farm plan did not go as anticipated this week. weather shifted. priorities shifted. problems appeared where we did not expect them. so as a team we pivoted the way farming always asks you to. adapt, respond, keep moving.

still, little by little, we chipped away doing our best to stay on track with the goals we set for this season.

but regardless of all of that, we made sure to stop and break bread together out in the field. to reflect. to laugh. to reconnect with each other and with why we do this work in the first place.

because wine is not just made in the cellar.
it is built in these moments too.

1000 good intentionsa wine that only became itself after letting go of what it was originally supposed to beitasca carry...
05/15/2026

1000 good intentions

a wine that only became itself after letting go of what it was originally supposed to be

itasca carrying the structure
frontenac bringing the edge
marquette tying the middle together

built through blending, friendship, trust, and a thousand small decisions trying to make something honest

not the critic, but the doer of deeds
the one in the arena

m

our micro hop yard is waking up exactly how we hoped it would.a lush understory of clover, alfalfa, and chicory now stre...
05/14/2026

our micro hop yard is waking up exactly how we hoped it would.

a lush understory of clover, alfalfa, and chicory now stretching beneath the trellis. this isn’t just “ground cover” to us. it is part of the system.

the clover helps fix nitrogen back into the soil
the alfalfa drives deep roots that help break compaction and cycle nutrients upward
the chicory mines minerals, supports pollinators, and helps keep the soil biologically active

together they help hold moisture, reduce erosion, protect soil life, and create a living carpet beneath the hops instead of bare exposed ground.

farming beyond organically means understanding that what happens below the surface matters just as much as what eventually climbs the trellis.

healthy plants begin with healthy soil.

pretty in pinka rosé that became itself the moment we stopped trying to force it into what a rosé was supposed to befron...
05/07/2026

pretty in pink

a rosé that became itself the moment we stopped trying to force it into what a rosé was supposed to be

frontenac gris, la crescent, frontenac noir, petite pearl
a little direct press, a little carbonic
native fermentation and surrender to the process

for those who don’t quite fit in
and wouldn’t have it any other way

wineisfarming ancestralfarming prettyinpink

last night temperatures dropped to 30° and for a few hours we genuinely did not know what this morning would bring.what ...
05/06/2026

last night temperatures dropped to 30° and for a few hours we genuinely did not know what this morning would bring.

what you’re looking at here is early bud swell, right as the vineyard begins approaching bud break. inside these buds are the first fragile shoots and future grape clusters of the 2026 vintage.

at this stage, a hard frost can damage or kill that young growth before the season truly begins.

roman did a full walkthrough of the vineyard early this morning after the temperature drop and thankfully it looks like we are in the clear with little to no damage observed across the blocks.

with a little mercy from mother nature, and as we approach what is typically the last stretch of frost warnings here, we can hopefully begin settling into the growing season ahead.

wine is farming. and farming will always humble you.

hybridgrapes midwestwine americanwine beyondorganic soilhealth regenerativefarming

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