Chenin Blanc Vertical

Grapes lightly crushed and allowed about 3 hours skin contact before gently pressing in a traditional basket press. Sulphur added and natural settling allowed for 2 days before 100 % barrel fermentation with natural yeasts.

An exceptional vintage. After the hot and dry 2016 season and a dry and warm autumn, we feared insufficient build-up of reserves in the vines and possible uneven budbreak, but we had a good normal wet and cold winter and the sudden warm weather in spring helped to provide more even budbreak than expected. The growing season was quite dry and mild with moderate to lower vigour and healthy growth, producing a slightly smaller crop than usual with small berries. We had ideal cooler weather during harvest time with cool nights and no substantial heatwaves. We picked some of our Chenin just before a heavy downpour at the end of January, but the balance enjoyed the moisture relief, which we picked over the following 3 weeks. An elegant, promising vintage, similar to 2007.

All the wine was fermented and matured in 225ℓ, 400ℓ and a few 700ℓ casks for 9 months with lees stirred as necessary to complete fermentation. 15% new French oak used. No malolactic fermentation.

Grapes lightly crushed and allowed about 2 hours skin contact before gently pressing in a traditional basket press. Sulphur added and natural settling allowed for 2 days before 100% barrel fermentation with natural yeasts.

Another excellent vintage to follow 2017 after 2 years of drought. Winter started a bit late, but was cold enough to get dormancy off to a good start. Bud break started late as winter dragged on into September. The early growing season was windy with cold and wet periods leading to uneven flowering and berry set resulting in lower yields. The rest of the growing season was dry and hot followed by much cooler temperatures in February with especially cool nights. Disease pressure was very low and the late start to harvest we had healthy grapes with small bunches and small berries. Harvest a little later than usual with very little rain problems.

All the wine was fermented and matured in 225ℓ, 400ℓ and a few 700ℓ casks for 10 months with lees stirred as necessary to complete fermentation. 10% new French oak used. No malolactic fermentation.

Grapes lightly crushed and allowed about 2 hours skin contact before gently pressing in a traditional basket press. Sulphur added and natural settling allowed for 2 days before 100 % barrel fermentation with natural yeasts.

Winter rainfall was higher than previous two vintages, but about average and slightly warmer than average. Bud break was rather uneven and required additional attention to foliage management during the growing period. A relatively cool wet spring, which continued throughout much of the growing season. The high fungal pressure required adhering diligently to a suitable spray programme throughout the season. Regular rainfall and low day and night temperatures during the ripening period meant there was no water stress and ripening was gentle and slow. A challenging, but exciting vintage with good acidity and a more elegant style. Harvest date: 31/1/19 to 19/2/19 @ 20,6 – 24,5 balling

All the wine was fermented and matured in 225ℓ, 400ℓ and 700ℓ casks for 10 months with lees stirred as necessary to complete fermentation. 10% new French oak used. Partial malolactic fermentation. Lightly fined with bentonite – a natural clay.

Grapes lightly crushed and allowed about 2 hours skin contact before gently pressing in a traditional basket press. Sulphur added and natural settling allowed for 2 days before 100% barrel fermentation with natural yeasts.

A relatively easy growing season with moderate weather throughout, following a cold wet winter. An exceptionally warm early spring ensured a successful budburst and flowering with good even shoot growth. Above average rain at the end of October kept soil moisture optimum during the later hot summer. Gale force winds in January caused damage to some of our exposed mountainous vineyards, but not the lower lying Chenin Blanc. An excellent early harvest with full bodied, generous wines with intense, complex fruit flavours.

All the wine was fermented and matured in 225ℓ, 400ℓ and 700ℓ casks for 10 months with lees stirred as necessary to complete fermentation. 10% new French oak used. Partial malolactic fermentation. Lightly fined with bentonite – a natural clay.

Grapes lightly crushed and allowed about 2 hours skin contact before gently pressing in a traditional basket press. Sulphur added and natural settling allowed for 2 days before. 100% Barrel fermentation with natural yeasts.

A late, but above average rainfall winter and spring ensured the soil profile was saturated contributing to a good growing season. Intermittent rain meant fungal disease pressure was quite high and we had to be on our toes with the spray programme. There were enough cold units for good even budbreak. A relatively cool growing season and ripening period meant ripening was slow and steady leading to one of the most exceptional vintages we’ve experienced. Good acidity and pHs. Harvest date: 11/2/21 - 2/3/21 @ 21 to 24,4 balling

All the wine was fermented and matured in 225ℓ, 400ℓ and 700ℓ casks for 8 months with lees stirred as necessary to complete fermentation. 10% new French oak used. Partial malolactic fermentation. Lightly fined with bentonite – a natural clay.

Grapes lightly crushed and allowed about 2 hours skin contact before gently pressing in a traditional basket press. Sulphur added and natural settling allowed for 2 days before. 100% Barrel fermentation with natural yeasts.

Ideal winter conditions with sufficient rain and cold units up until the end of August 2021. Excellent budbreak about 7 days later than usual resulting in nice even growth. Early spring was cool and dry and then became cooler and wetter with 123mm in October. This provided vigorous canopies and high fungal disease pressure which was well managed by our growers. A very hot and dry January was quite a shock to many vineyards, but our old Chenin vines in deep soils managed this period well. February was cooler with a little relieving rain. Slightly higher yields, but all in really good balance and picked in perfect condition. Harvest date: 10/2/22 - 22/2/22 @ 20,6 to 24,2 balling

All the wine was fermented and matured in 225ℓ, 400ℓ and 700ℓ casks for 10 months with lees stirred as necessary to complete fermentation. 10% new French oak used. Partial malolactic fermentation. Lightly fined with bentonite – a natural clay.