Yorkshire Heart Vineyard – a modern vineyard uses modern solution for their wine label production
Just outside the beautiful village Nun Monkton between York and Harrogate in North Britain lays the seven-acre vineyard of Chris Spakouskas and his wife Gillian.
Chris and Gillian didn’t become winegrowers the normal way. Originally, they own a farm and produce milk for the area. But Gillian always made homemade wine out of a variety of fruits. That led into growing grapes to produce their very own wine. Now they have 14 varieties of black and white grapes. 70% of them are Solaris, Rondo, Seyval Blanc and Pinot Noir – less known vines that have been especially bred to grow in a cooler climate. Additionally well known grapes like Dornfelder, Chardonnay, Gamay and Cabernet Franc also grow at Yorkshire Heart.
Chris and Gillian planted their first vines in 2006 and have added vines each year until in 2010 the whole vineyard was planted up. The oldest plants were cropped in October 2009 and in May 2010 they filled about 2,000 bottles of their very first wine. The grapes are processed in their winery, located only half a mile from the vineyard. That’s also where the resulting wine is stored. “We produce white, red and rose still wine as well as white and rose sparkling wine,” tells Chris proudly. “We hope to produce 35,000 bottles of wine by 2015.”
The Spakouskas very well know, that it won’t be easy. Especially the weather in North Yorkshire is one of the major concerns when growing vines there. But the sometimes rubbish weather and the rougher climate probably are the heart of the distinctive taste that vine has in the area. That taste goes perfectly with local beef and cheese. Chris explains further: “It’s local wine for local food, local people and it’s produced here!”
Such a special wine needs special labels, which also are cost-effective. The printed quality and appearance of wine labels are extremely important. Providing a professional appearance on packages can easily make the difference between a wine selling well or simply sitting on the shelf. The quality of the wine needs to be reflected by the used labels. But finding a cost-effective and convenient way to produce high-quality, full-colour labels has not been easy.
In the past Chris and Gillian bought short-run labels from external label manufactures. But not only did they have to order large numbers well in advance, those labels are also very expensive. “Frankly, there are no advantages,” said Chris. “That’s why I searched on the Internet and in trade magazines for other solutions and came across the LX900e Color Label Printer by Primera Technology.”
Primera Technology, Inc. is based in Plymouth, MN, USA and looks back at thirty-three years of designing and manufacturing speciality colour printers. Over a million printers have been built and sold in more than 157 countries. Primera has successfully developed short to medium-run solutions using both colour inkjet and colour laser technologies.
For many years now, Primera Technology Europe, the EMEA office located in Wiesbaden, Germany, attends the London International Wine Fair. The event takes place mid of May every year and welcomes exhibitors and visitors from around the world. In 2010, Chris attended that show and finally found what he was looking for: the LX900e Color Label Printer – a label printer that produces full-colour labels fast, on-demand and cost-effective.
LX900e incorporates the most advanced inkjet technology ever offered in a desktop label printer and delivers razor-sharp text, graphics and the most photo-realistic printing possible at up to 4800 dpi print resolution in up to 16.7 million colours. LX900e has extremely fast print speeds – up to 4.5“ per second. It also has separate ink cartridges for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black; saving money on every printed label but especially when a design uses more of one colour than another. LX900e prints onto many different inkjet-qualified label and tag materials in all kinds of shapes and sizes, including white and clear polyester and white BOPP (Biaxially-oriented Polypropylene) material. Printed labels are highly water-, scratch-, smudge- and tear-resistant.
“Of course I looked for other solutions but after I’ve seen and realised how simple the LX900e is to use, I knew it was perfect for us,” explains Chris why he chose Primera. “The Primera LX900e is a superb printer. I can honestly say that the print quality is first class and your only limit to label design is your imagination. I can also strongly recommend the Primera AP362e Label Applicator to go along with the printer.”
The AP362e, a model of the AP-Series Label Applicators, is a semi-automatic labelling solution for cylindrical containers as well as many tapered containers, including bottles, cans, jars and tubes. The AP-Series applies labels at speeds of up to 1200 per hour. Labels are perfectly applied without wrinkles, giving the wine bottles of Yorkshire Heart the deserved professional look. AP-Series Label Applicators are an accessory to Primera’s LX-Series label printers. The applicators can also apply roll-fed, pressure-sensitive labels produced by most other flexographic, offset and digital presses. There are two models available: AP360e is the base model. It quickly and efficiently applies single labels at a time. AP362e is an advanced model. It can apply one or two different labels to a single container. A built-in LED counter and memory for up to nine front-to-back label offsets is also included.
Right now the Spakouskas can put up to 50 hours a week at the vineyard on top of their normal milk-round. Both machines, the LX900e and the AP362e, are efficient, cost-effective and easy to use. Exactly what’s needed to help achieving the goal of 35,000 bottles of Yorkshire Heart vine in 4 years. For the moment, producing tasteful local wine is still a family business that wouldn’t work without the help of family members and friends. The Spakouskas won’t stop the milk-rounds just yet. But you’ll never know what the future holds …
At the London International Wine Fair, taking place at Excel, London from May 17 to 19, Primera Technology Europe is showing to all interested visitors and exhibitors how easy it is to design and produce gorgeous and individual wine labels. The company is located at stand # S2.
