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VINEYARD BLOCKS
2 blocks ( Keerweder ) 33 year
old vines on a 3 wire trellis on neighbouring cool, high altitude,
SW slope. Deep red Hutton soil with good moisture retention.
Unirrigated. Yield 3 tons / ha.
2 blocks ( Post House ) 19 &
21 year old vines on a 7 wire trellis with moveable foliage
wires. Lower slopes of the Helderberg, 8 km from the cooling
influence of the sea. Gravelly Hutton and Escourt soil. Yield
5 tons / ha. Lightly irrigated just after veraison.
1 block ( Waterkloof ) 22 year
old bush vines on nearby north facing deep red Hutton soil
with good moisture retention. Unirrigated. Yield
8 tons / ha.
VINTAGE CONDITIONS
A late winter which delayed budding by about 2 weeks. Cool
spring / early summer but a relatively trouble-free growing
season. A single extremely hot day in January caused a lot
of sunburn, especially in the Keermont vineyard. This significantly
reduced the harvest but had little effect on quality. The
delayed harvest gave us rich intense fruit from the earlier
ripening Post House vineyard and a more subtle mineral character
from the much later Keermont vineyard. The grapes were picked
in the cool mornings @ 22 – 23.8º Balling.
Harvest dates: 2 / 2 / 05 - 28 / 2 / 05
PRODUCTION
Grapes lightly crushed and allowed 3 hours skin contact before
gently pressing in a traditional basket press. Sulphur and
dry ice added and natural settling allowed for 2 days before
100 % barrel fermentation with natural yeasts.
All the wine was kept in 225 l and a few 700 l casks for 8
months with lees stirred 1 - 2 times a month initially.
15% new oak used – half French, half American. Most
barrels did not go through malolactic fermentation.
Bottled unfiltered on the property by hand with only a light
bentonite fining.
Bottling date : 21 / 11 / 05.
TASTING NOTES
An appealing pale yellow colour.
The nose shows damp hay, rich apricot and creamed honey fruit,
subtle oak and a complex mineral character. The palate is
rich and full bodied with a touch of sugar. A little reductive
shortly after bottling, but opens up quickly with air. Probably
best between 2006 and 2009.
Excellent with lightly spicy Thai style dishes, seafood and
most white meats or on its own.
ANALYSIS
ALC. 14.29% SUGAR 4.6 TA 5.4
pH 3.54 VA 0.58 SO2 46 & 124 |
