Cinsault

The wine was made with the cuisine of the west coast in mind. Crayfish, Harders, and a cold glass of wine is part of the history that is Donkiesbaai.

The Donkiesbaai Cinsault is made using fruit from Certified Heritage Vineyards, which were certified through the Old Vine Project. The vineyards were planted in 1967 and are unirrigated bush vines, planted on poor, sandstone soils. The vineyards are 650m above sea level, experiencing warm summer days with cool nights and relatively low winter rainfall of approximately 550mm per annum. The Cinsault is planted on its own rootstock, which is very rare to find, and provides the purest varietal expression. The bush vines are planted at a very low density, with only 1785 vines per hectare, and 3m spacing between rows. The low density allows vines to thrive in a low rainfall area without irrigation. Also, considering ongoing climate change, low density, unirrigated vineyards are much less vulnerable to climatic drought compared to medium or high-density vineyards.

Maturation takes place in seasoned 500l French oak barrels for approximately 14 months.

80% of the Cinsault is destemmed, while 20% of the fruit is fermented as whole clusters. Spontaneous fermentation in open top 4-ton fermentation tanks. Gentle punch downs and pump overs are performed during fermentation.

Donkiesbaai on the West Coast of South Africa has been the vacation home to the Engelbrecht family for four generations. The grapes for this wine come from the small region of Piekenierskloof. The complexity of this wine comes from the unique Piekenierskloof climate which allows us to produce an elegant yet approachable wine.