Wine prices
| Reference | Vintage / size | Price / bottle | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Producer priceRecommended retail price | 2025 / 750ml | ≈ $27.69Original ZAR 455.00≈ €24.64 · £20.81 | www.exanimo.co.za ↗ |
| Producer priceRecommended retail price | 2024 / 750ml | ≈ $27.69Original ZAR 455.00≈ €24.64 · £20.81 | www.exanimo.co.za ↗ |
| Producer priceRecommended retail price | 2023 / 750ml | ≈ $27.69Original ZAR 455.00≈ €24.64 · £20.81 | www.exanimo.co.za ↗ |
2025 Technical Specifications
Alcohol 13.85%
Residual Sugar 1.1 g/L
pH 3.14
Total Acidity 6.7 g/L
Calories (estimated) 115 kcal / glass
150ml glass115 kcal
750ml bottle575 kcal
Grape Varieties 100% Sauvignon blanc
Classification Wine of Origin Olifantsrivier
Region Olifants River
Soil Iron-rich sand soils over clay and alluvial deposits
Vine Age 27–31 year old vineyards
Fermentation Vessels 225 L, 300 L and 500 L old oak barrels
Pressing Method Whole-Bunch Pressed In An Old Vaslin Basket Press
Natural Yeast Yes
Oak Types old French oak
Barrel Size 225 L, 300 L and 500 L
Production Details Whole-bunch pressed without SO2 or other additions; wild-fermented in old oak; matured on gross lees for 9–10 months; first SO2 addition made in early winter.
Tasting Notes lemon drop, granadilla, loquat, tinned pineapple, struck match, fennel, crushed sea shells, chalk, yellow tropical fruit, pea shoots, greengage, lemon curd, saline finish
Sources: www.thorneanddaughters.com ↗ · Compare this vintage
2024 Technical Specifications
Alcohol 14.03%
Residual Sugar 2.6 g/L
pH 3.29
Total Acidity 5.9 g/L
Calories (estimated) 120 kcal / glass
150ml glass120 kcal
750ml bottle600 kcal
Grape Varieties Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc100%
Region Olifants River
Soil Decomposed table mountain sandstone, Clay, Alluvial deposits
Vine Age 26-30 year old vineyards
Fermentation Vessels Oak Barrel
Pressing Method Whole Cluster
Natural Yeast Yes
Indigenous Yeast Yes
Oak Aging 9 months
Oak Types French
Barrel Size 225L, 300L, 500L
Production Details The 2024 vintage saw a hot and dry month in January pushing early varietal picks forward. The picks at Arbeidsend, Oudam and Rietvallei were challenging due to heat and speed. Yields were moderate. Grapes had thick skins. The grapes are whole-bunch pressed in old Vaslin basket presses with no SO2 or other additions. The juice is wild-fermented in a mix of 225, 300 and 500 litre old oak barrels. The wines remain on their gross lees for 9-10 months before blending and bottling. Malolactic fermentation is favored over early additions of sulphur dioxide, with a first addition of SO2 in early winter.
Tasting Notes
Nose: blackcurrant leaf, hay, marzipan, exotic tropical fruit
Palate: gooseberry, prickly pear, saline acidity
Sources: thorneanddaughters.com ↗ · Compare this vintage
2023 Technical Specifications
Alcohol 14.65%
Residual Sugar 2.3 g/L
pH 3.29
Total Acidity 5.9 g/L
Calories (estimated) 125 kcal / glass
150ml glass125 kcal
750ml bottle625 kcal
Grape Varieties Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc100%
Region Olifants River
Soil Decomposed table mountain sandstone, Clay, Alluvial deposits
Vine Age 25-29 year old vineyards
Fermentation Vessels Oak Barrel
Pressing Method Whole Cluster
Natural Yeast Yes
Oak Aging 9 months
Oak Types oak
Barrel Size 225L, 300L
Production Details The wine comes from pristine grapes and is vinified as simply as possible, using whole bunch pressing. It undergoes months of cool maturation in old oak barrels. The 2023 growing season was very dry, but the ripening period was mercifully moderate, allowing for a decent crop at very solid ripeness levels. The 2023 wine includes portions from the van Lill’s Arbeidsend, the Visser’s Oudam and a small amount from the Laing’s. Grapes are whole-bunch pressed in an old Vaslin basket press with no SO2 or other additions. The juice is wild-fermented in a mix of 225 and 300 litre old oak barrels where the wines remain on their gross lees for 9-10 months before blending and bottling. Malolactic fermentation is favoured over early additions of sulphur dioxide, and the wines only see a first addition of SO2 in the early winter.
Tasting Notes
Nose: blackcurrants, crushed bay leaves, nori, tropical fruit
Palate: gooseberry, granadilla, saline acidity
Sources: thorneanddaughters.com ↗ · Compare this vintage
2022 Technical Specifications
Alcohol 14.05%
Residual Sugar 2.2 g/L
pH 3.22
Total Acidity 7.1 g/L
Calories (estimated) 120 kcal / glass
150ml glass120 kcal
750ml bottle600 kcal
Grape Varieties Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc100%
Region Olifants River
Soil Sandy soils over clay
Vine Age 24-27 year old vineyards
Fermentation Vessels Oak Barrel
Pressing Method Whole Cluster
Natural Yeast Yes
Oak Aging 9 months
Oak Types old oak
Barrel Size 225 litre
Production Details The Skurfberg remains one of the most challengingly dry areas that we work with, and despite a wetter growing season in the rest of the Cape, little rain fell up there. We are continuously impressed with the vines' ability to survive and thrive in these extreme conditions. Crop levels were up nicely and the quality was fantastic despite some very hot periods during the early part of January. The vines showed little of the heat pressure in their canopy and we were able to ripen a wonderful crop. We have been slowly expanding the number of blocks that we have access to up in the Skurfberg and the 2022 wines are the first to include some bushvine fruit from the Visser vineyard of Oudam, which is a near neighbour to the van Lill's Arbeidsend farm. This is a very exciting development for us as Oudam brings a wonderful ripeness and concentration of tropical fruit to the blend, with Arbeidsend showing some relative reserve. This is a "region of compulsion" for me as I just can't turn down the opportunity to work with grapes from this area. I'm continually delighted to see the kind of complexity and texture that Sauvignon blanc can deliver on the right sites, showing itself to be one of the World's classic grape varieties. We have stuck to our winemaking basics here, eschewing primary fruit in favour of the deeper characteristics of the wines. The grapes are whole-bunch pressed in our old Vaslin basket press with no SO2 or other additions. The juice is then wild-fermented in a mix of 225 litre old oak barrels where the wines remain on their gross lees for 9-10 months before blending and bottling. We favour malolactic fermentation over early additions of sulphur dioxide, and the wines only see a first addition of SO2 in the early winter. We are looking for wines that show tension without losing their suppleness and core, and wines that will reward time in the cellar.
Tasting Notes
Nose: ripe papaya, spun sugar, smoky mineral notes
Palate: tangerine, brioche, earth, honeysuckle
Sources: thorneanddaughters.com ↗ · Compare this vintage
2021 Technical Specifications
Alcohol 14.14%
Residual Sugar 1.5 g/L
pH 3.19
Total Acidity 6.5 g/L
Calories (estimated) 120 kcal / glass
150ml glass120 kcal
750ml bottle600 kcal
Grape Varieties Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc100%
Region Olifants River
Soil Red sand
Vine Age 27 year old
Fermentation Vessels Oak Barrel
Pressing Method Whole Cluster
Natural Yeast Yes
Oak Aging 12 months
Lees Aging 1 year
Barrel Size 225 litre
Production Details The wine that comes from these pristine grapes is deeply complex and we vinify it as simply as we can from whole bunch pressing the grapes to months of cool maturation in old oak barrels. Crushed blackcurrant leaf, opulent exotic fruit and smokey mineral notes form an intensely complex nose. The palate is rich and structured with green mango, sourdough, earth and ripe fig cut by saline acidity. We have stuck to our winemaking basics here, eschewing primary fruit in favour of the deeper characteristics of the wines. The grapes are whole-bunch pressed in our old Vaslin basket press with no SO2 or other additions. The juice is then wild fermented in a mix of 225 litre old oak barrels where the wines remain on their gross lees for 12 months before blending and bottling. We favour malolactic fermentation over early additions of sulphur dioxide, and the wines only see a first addition of SO2 in the early winter. We are looking for wines that show tension without losing their suppleness, and wines that will reward time in the cellar.
Tasting Notes
Nose: crushed blackcurrant leaf, opulent exotic fruit, smokey mineral notes
Palate: green mango, sourdough, earth, ripe fig, saline acidity
Sources: thorneanddaughters.com ↗ · Compare this vintage
2020 Technical Specifications
Alcohol 13.62%
Residual Sugar 1.4 g/L
pH 3.13
Total Acidity 6.7 g/L
Calories (estimated) 115 kcal / glass
150ml glass115 kcal
750ml bottle575 kcal
Grape Varieties Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc100%
Region Olifants River
Soil Red sand
Vine Age 27 year old
Fermentation Vessels Oak Barrel
Pressing Method Whole Cluster
Natural Yeast Yes
Malolactic Fermentation 100%
Oak Aging 12 months
Used Oak Only Yes
Production Details Snakes and Ladders' name takes its inspiration from the wild nature of these elevated bushvine vineyards high up in the mountains, along with the tight and low-to-the-ground farming style. The incredible parcels are in such a challenging climate. It is this heat and water scarcity that keeps the roots of these vines searching for every ounce of nutrients they can extract from their deep red soils. The wine that comes from these pristine grapes is deeply complex and we vinify them simply, as we can from whole bunch pressing the grapes to months of cool maturation in old oak barrels. Little of the season's rain reached our Skurfberg Sauvignon blanc vineyard in the 2020 growing season, so we were still dealing with a very dry growing season up there. That said, it seems the timing of the rain was able to help support a very healthy canopy of leaves on the vineyard, and the dryness provides a good limit on the natural vigour of the Sauvignon blanc vines. This vineyard never seems to fail to deliver wildly concentrated fruit, and it's hard to contain the excitement we all feel when this makes it into the cellar. It's a difficult pick as we need to balance the big fruit ripeness we get from the less vigorous part of the block with the pungent green notes that we get from the more vigorous vines. That being said, I think we walked the knife edge of ripeness well during the 2020 season and delivered some great wines. This is a vineyard of compulsion for me as I just couldn't turn down the opportunity to work with grapes from this area. I'm continually delighted to see the kind of complexity and texture that Sauvignon blanc can deliver on the right sites. Our key focus during harvest is picking times. If we can pick grapes at the right time, we can achieve tension and ripeness in the wine without the need to manipulate and "dress-up" the wines. We have stuck to our winemaking basics here, eschewing primary fruit in favour of the deeper characteristics of the wines. The grapes are whole-bunch pressed in our old Vaslin basket press with no SO2 or other additions. The juice is then wild fermented in a mix of 225 litre old oak barrels where the wines remain on their gross lees for 12 months before blending and bottling. We favour malolactic fermentation over early addition of sulphur dioxide, and the wines only see a first addition of SO2 in the early winter. We are looking for wines that show tension without losing their suppleness and core, and wines that will reward time in the cellar.
Tasting Notes
blackcurrant leaf, ruby grapefruit, Chinese guavas, lemongrass, gooseberry, sumac
Sources: thorneanddaughters.com ↗ · Compare this vintage
2019 Technical Specifications
Alcohol 13.76%
Residual Sugar 1.4 g/L
pH 3.25
Total Acidity 6.2 g/L
Calories (estimated) 115 kcal / glass
150ml glass115 kcal
750ml bottle575 kcal
Grape Varieties Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc100%
Region Olifants River
Soil Red sand over clay
Vine Age 27 year old
Fermentation Vessels Oak Barrel
Pressing Method Whole Cluster
Natural Yeast Yes
Oak Aging 9 months
Oak Types old oak
Barrel Size 225 litre, 600 litre
Production Details The 2019 vintage saw little respite from the drought which has gripped the Western Cape over the last few years. Rainfall is limited in the Skurfberg, even in the best of years, though in the case of the Sauvignon blanc this provides a good counterpoint to the vine's natural vigour. I was quite simply blown away by the quality of the fruit this year, with bags of flavour, ripping acids and endless concentration. Our key focus during harvest is picking times. If we can pick grapes at the right time, we can achieve tension and ripeness in the wine without the need to manipulate and "dress-up" the wines. It's a big commitment to jump in the truck at midnight and head up the West Coast to arrive at 05h30 in the morning ahead of the pickers, but I think that seeing the wines in barrel and now in bottle, it is a worthwhile sacrifice. The vineyard was brought to us by a close friend who works with Chenin in the area. My natural inclination was to have little interest in working with Sauvignon blanc, but seeing the vineyard and the soils, I felt compelled to work with it. Working with the fruit in the 2020 harvest was an absolute pleasure and I'm delighted to see the kind of complexity and texture that Sauvignon blanc can deliver on the right sites. We have stuck to our winemaking basics here, eschewing primary fruit in favour of the deeper characteristics of the wines. The grapes are whole-bunch pressed in our old Vaslin press with no SO2s and no other additions. The juice is then wild-fermented in mix of 225 and 600 litre old oak barrels where the wines remain on their gross lees for 9-10 months before blending and bottling. We favour no malolactic fermentation over early additions of sulphur dioxide, and the wines only see a first addition of SO2 in the early winter. We are looking for wines that show tension without losing their suppleness and core, and wines that will reward time in the cellar.
Tasting Notes
Nose: honey melon, warm citrus
Palate: lime leaf, bergamot, dried pear
Sources: thorneanddaughters.com ↗ · Compare this vintage
Producer Information
Website
Owner
John and Tasha Seccombe
Cellarmaster
John Seccombe