Lokkelebery Vineyard sets sail

Welcome to our official Lokkelebery Logo, the historic Dutch herring boat known as a ‘Buis’. From the very beginning, the story of our vineyard has been one intertwined with family, farming, heritage, and the terroir (soil) into which the vineyard, and our arable crops, are planted. This beautiful boat is no exception and today we are delighted to launch it on its maiden voyage, to celebrate the planting of our Lokkelebery Vineyard.

Dutch Heritage and the ‘Buis’

Most families can trace their routes across the globe; ours happens to be to the Netherlands. So why not a tulip or a clog? Well, if you travel back to the 16th century, our relatives were herring shipping traders, responsible for the shipping and transporting of herring from the Netherlands to other nations such as England.

The herring boat or ‘Buis’ was an essential part of trade between England and the Netherlands from the 15th to the 19th Century. Traders such as those in our family, worked out a way to preserve the herrings in salt which revolutionised the trade of these precious fish. They were prized for their medicinal qualities in helping to prevent vitamin deficiency and so the trade in herring thrived. Their ability to preserve the fish meant that they could also increase trade by making longer voyages, such as the trip from the Netherlands to England.

Much like the joining of two nations through trading by ‘Buis’, our Anglo Dutch family are joined by our farm and now, our vineyard. The ‘Buis’ demonstrates this international union of heritage and family.

Trade

As mentioned, the Dutch herring boat or ‘Buis’ played a key role in trade for more than 500 years. This has multiple meanings for us as we start on our new vineyard venture.

Firstly, trading runs in the family and has done so for generations. As farmers, we have traded in grain, wool, livestock and more. In the past, our family traded in spices and travelled around the world to do so, collecting many new ideas and passions including a keen interest in oenology (the study of wines). As herring traders, we played our part in the 500-year-old tradition of herring trading; we also diversified the herring business in using salt as a preservative. In the same way, we are diversifying at the farm, readying it for the future with the addition of the vineyard.

Additionally, our new venture is all about trade. Whether selling our grapes or our wine, trade will be pivotal in the future of our vineyard, and the ‘Buis’ is the perfect symbol of this.

Setting sail on a new voyage

This boat is symbolic of many things as we have explained, but it is also the sign of a voyage, and that is exactly what we are doing at the farm. With our new crop, a new chapter begins; we are setting sail on a new voyage of discovery.

The Dutch Herring Boat or ‘Buis’ is, for us, the ultimate symbol to connect our heritage, family, and farm with the beginning of our new vineyard venture.

Our thanks go to our dear friend Eleanor Gardner for helping us realise this vision by illustrating our boat.