Series #3 2018 (Grenache blanc)

Style:

Light bodied. Dry white. Saline. Fit for Mediterranean lighter dishes

Tasting Notes:

Pale yellow. This wine has a remarkable limey character to it, both in from and flavour. On the nose you will get soft floral notes and brioche. The palate is light, but undeniably tasty and flavourful with a long mineral follow. Soft, well balanced and natural acidity levels cement a lasting flavour of fresh cut lemongrass, green apple, pineapple and salinity. Weightless intensity, effortless appreciation.

Background:

Keeping his art style in mind of abstract portraiture (individuality), Lionel decided to make this wine from a rather scarce cultivar in the Cape which is well adapted to South Africa’s climate and soils. Grenache blanc was the answer, a common variety from northern Spain and southern France. Made naturally with traditional vinification methods to create this light bodied, savoury and complex white wine that cements a mineral follow.

Ageing Potential:

Drink now but will age a few more years with careful cellaring.

Serving temperature:

11 to 14° Celsius.

Viticulturist:

Willie Mostert w/ Bernhard Bredell

Harvest Date:

1 February 2017

Analysis:

Alcohol 11.57 %, pH 3.31, Acidity 6 g/l, Res. Sugar 1.5 g/l

Climate, Soil and Vineyard:

Mediterranean climate with less than 500mm rain per annum. This part of the Voor Paardeberg appellation (south east face of the Paardeberg mountain close to Paarl) enjoys fresh breezes of wind during the summer and helps to unlock flavours in the skins early in the season, while protecting its delicate acidity. The soils are light clay with decomposed granite from the Paardeberg Mountain, adding both good water holding capacity and good drainage. Vineyards are oriented South East to North West, lowering sun exposure to the bunches and allowing the cooling South Easter to channel down the rows. The vines are trellised as Grenache blanc enjoys enough vigour here.

Vinification:

Grapes were hand harvested early in the morning while the fruit was still fresh and firm. Grapes were transported in small 18kg boxes, so as for them to not get damaged before arriving at the winery. 100% destemmed into open vats for 3 days with skin maceration under cool temperatures. Traditional wood basket pressed and racked to barrel for a long spontaneous fermentation by the native yeasts. 1/4 of fermentation took place in new French oak barrels, with the rest of fermentation in old neutral French oak barrels. Aged on its lees for 10 months in these older French oak, 4th fill, white wine barrels before racking and bottling.

Vintage:

2017 was one of the driest vintages the Cape has experienced. It came after an already moderately dry 2016 vintage and made things very challenging in the vineyards. Fortunately, it was an overall cooler vintage with lower than usual night time temperatures over December 2016 to January 2017, making it perfect for flavour development and acidity retention. The grapes turned out extremely healthy and ripened earlier, although production per vine was slightly less than usual. One of the best vintages yet.