This wine is made from a small, site specific vineyard, planted in clay soil. The vigour of the vineyard is relatively poor and the vines are very shy yielding. This allows for tiny berries with concentrated flavour. The North-South orientation of the block means that the grapes are well exposed to morning and late afternoon sunshine, which is perfect for intense colour and aromatic development.
The 2015 has a delightfully intense plum and berry bouquet with a hint of sweet cloves and vanilla oak. Bold berry fruit and ripe dark plums persist on the palate, nicely supported by smokey vanilla and spicey coconut. The palate is broad and rich with great fruit intensity, soft acidity and abundant finely textured tannin. A full flavoured modern wine with international finesse.
| Appellation | Voor Paardeberg, Paarl, South Africa |
|---|---|
| Varieties | Pinotage |
| Climate |
A very dry and hot growing season |
| Age of Vines | 5 to 30 years |
| Vinification |
The grapes are hand-picked in early February with a ripeness of 25 Balling. Each bunch is prechilled before being destemmed and berry sorted. The berries are not crushed, but are fermented whole. This allows for a gradual extraction of tannins and colour, which promotes finesse, balance and longevity. The berries are fermented in open top fermenters, which provide easy access for the winemaker to assess and manipulate the fermentation. The wine is punched down (mixed) rigorously for 5 days until just before dry and then basket pressed directly to second fill, 300L American oak barrels. |
| Maturation |
Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrel, which promotes harmony and seamless integration of the oak flavours. The wine is further matured on the yeast and malolactic lees for 14 months. At this point the finest 5 barrels are selected, blended and returned to barrel for an additional 8 months. Finally, the wine is kept for 4 months in a stainless steel tank to promote stability and clarification, before it is bottled and laid to rest for a full year before it is released. |
| Winemaker | Mathew Copeland |
| AWARDS: |
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