Technical Specifications
Alcohol 13.2%
Residual Sugar 1.6 g/L
pH 3.54
Total Acidity 5.8 g/L
Calories (estimated) 110 kcal / glass
150ml glass110 kcal
750ml bottle550 kcal
Grape Varieties Chenin Blanc, Viognier, Blanc Fumé
Chenin Blanc61%
Viognier20%
Blanc Fumé19%
Region Bot River
Harvest Dates February 12, 2020 (Bot River, Barton Chenin Blanc); February 12, 2020 (Bot River, Stuart Vineyards Chenin Blanc); February 24, 2020 (Elgin, Elgin Ridge Sauvignon Blanc); February 24, 2020 (Elgin, Elgin Orchards Viognier)
Brix at Harvest 21.8°
Sites Bot River, Barton Chenin Blanc; Bot River, Stuart Vineyards Chenin Blanc; Elgin, Elgin Ridge Sauvignon Blanc; Elgin, Elgin Orchards Viognier
Fermentation Vessels Oak Barrel
Botrytis Affected Yes
Oak Aging 10 months
Closure Crown Cap
Production Details The 2020 shows a slight change in style, fuller and richer than the previous 5 vintages due to a small percentage of botrytis in the Chenin Blanc grapes so that during skin contact at the beginning of fermentation, the sugars actually went up instead of down. Due to this, the skin contact time for the Chenin was reduced to 3 days of fermentation. The majority of the Viognier was fermented on skins with a smaller, later picked portion fermented in barrel. We continue to get outstanding quality and high acidity Sauvignon Blanc from Elgin to balance the juicy tropical fruit. As in previous years, the Chenin and Viognier are pressed and allowed to finish the fermentation in barrel. The Blanc Fumé is pressed and the juice racked to barrel without settling to give more texture and finish the fermentation. All the components spent 10 months in French Oak barrels of which the majority were old. We left all the wine on gross lees with regular batonnage to flesh out the wine. We racked and made up the blend and the only time we added SO2 was to protect the wine for the bottling process. We blended the 3 components to make sure that the wine is in absolute balance. We felt that the wine was showing so much fruit and fullness that it needed an extra 6% of the 2021 Sauvignon Blanc harvest. So the resultant blend this year is 61% Chenin Blanc, 20% Viognier and 19% Blanc Fumé. We hope that we have continued to achieve our goal which is to have a serious, well-structured yet refreshingly fruity white wine.
Tasting Notes
Nose: fresh orange peel, potpourri, peach, apricot, lime blossom
Palate: white pear, lime, tropical fruit, clean, fresh, salty, citrus
▸ Sources (1)
Producer Information
Website
Address
Van Der Stel Pass, Bot River, 7185, Western Cape, South Africa
Phone
+27 (0) 28 001 0516
Email
Owner
Niels and Penny Verburg
Cellarmaster
Niels Verburg & Alice Verburg