Swartland Syrah

Lamb loin confit belly, served with harissa, babaganoush, chick peas, baby marrow, pistacchio and lamb jus.

The vineyards supplying the fruit for this wine are farmed on three impressively disparate Swartland sites. The first bush vine block is situated on the foothills of the Paardeberg (at an altitude of 290m) and deeply rooted in ancient free-draining decomposed granite soils. This site is northwest-facing and brings perfume, spice and purity to the wine. The second vineyard is in the heart of the Swartland, facing north. These bush vines are planted on Malmesbury shale, providing striking acidity and a mineral edge. The dominant source is from the western foot of the Riebeek Mountains at 340m ASL. This slope consists of an outcrop of schist that faces southeast and shows plenty of structure and depth of fruit. This Swartland Syrah has the typical concentration of low-yielding vineyards planted in Mediterranean climatic conditions. In this light, whole berry-fermentation was employed to ensure that there is no shortage of elegance in the final wine. Between 50 and 75% of the fruit was fermented as whole clusters, depending on the parcel.

Malolactic conversion occurred spontaneously, after which the wine was matured in 1000-litre oak foudres for 11 months.

Fermentation took place in open-top fermenters and two 1000-litre foudres, with pump-overs being limited to a maximum of two per day during peak fermentation. All fermentations took place spontaneously, using only naturally occurring yeasts.

DAMASCENE is a partnership between Jean Smit and David Curl, former owner of Château Gaby in Canon-Fronsac, Bordeaux. What began as a conversation around making wine from the Pinot Noir planted on Curl’s Elgin estate swiftly revealed the pair’s shared passion for celebrating unsung pockets of South African terroir. Following the maxim of ‘Less cult, more cultivation’, the founding philosophy of DAMASCENE is simple, yet unyielding: that the journey to great wine can only begin in the vineyard. “DAMASCENE is about seeking out memorable vineyards and sites that truly showcase the incredible diversity of terroir we have here in the Western Cape,” says Smit. “I spend countless days on the road, covering thousands of kilometres, visiting vineyards and farmers in search of special parcels of land.”