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VINEYARD BLOCK
Mostly from 9 year old vines on 4 wire vertical trellis. Clone
cs 46a on 101 - 14 rootstock. Soil gravelly red hutton type.
On low lying helderberg mountain site. No irrigation necessary
in 1997. Yield 4
tons / hect. 14 % merlot incl.
VINTAGE CONDITIONS
A very difficult vintage with a lot of rain during the initial
growing period. The ripening period, however, was ideal with
record low temperatures and almost no rain.
Harvest date : 1 / 4/ 97 - 4 / 4 / 97 @ 22.6 - 24.5° BALLING.
PRODUCTION
100% destemming and crushing by hand directly into 2 ton open
top fermentation tanks. Spotaneous natural
yeast fermentation @ 30 degrees celsius with the cap
of skins punched down 2 - 4 times a day for 11 days. Aim was
to extract max. Colour, flavour and tannins without undue
harshness. Wine drained directly to barrels together with
single pressing from traditional basket press.
All wine undergoes malolactic fermentation in
the barrel. This helps integrate the new oak component and
fix colour and flavour compounds. 35%
new french oak and 5% new american oak was used from
the high quality " taransaud" and "demptos"
cooperages. Time in barrel
19 months, which included several
rackings to gradually clarify the wine and assist maturation
development.
This wine was lightly fined with egg whites
( 2 - 3 eggs per barrel ), before bottling unfiltered
by hand on the property.
Bottling date : 4 / 12 / 98
TASTING NOTES
Dense, deep red colour. Intense blackcurrant fruit and spicy
christmas pudding aromas. Persistent, richly - textured palate
with layers of berry fruit and spicy oak. Fine, firm structure
and long finish. Probably best between 2000 and 2007. Enjoy
with rich, but finely flavoured dishes such as roasted or
pan fried red and white meats.
ANALYSIS
ALC. 13.87 SG. 1.8 TA 5.7
PH 3.69 VA 0.79 SO2 27 / 39
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