Glass Collection Cabernet Franc

Red meats like steak, game and venison.

Winter was cold and wet, helping with soil moisture after the 2018 drought. Although we had a cool spring, we still had good bud burst. Fluctuations in weather during flowering and berry set, resulted in loose, uneven bunches with small berries. Veraison started earlier than usual. Cool conditions during growing season led to uneven bunch ripening. However, much needed heat in February accelerated the harvest of the early varietals and evened out bunches. The harvest was challenging. Wet conditions at the end of February to the end of March meant that we had a long 3 weeks break in the harvest. This positively impacted us, increasing ripening time. The harvest was smaller than previous years but of high quality.

The wine was racked on average every 4 months and matured during 12 months.

The grapes were lightly crushed into stainless steel tanks. The fermentation was done with natural, indigenous yeasts and a mixture of rack and returns and open pump overs. Post fermentation, skin contact was observed for a period of 2 to 3 weeks, followed by a gentle press. Malolactic fermentation occurred in French oak barrels.

Winemaker Dirk and assistant Lehandri endeavour to make Glenelly wines as naturally as possible with wild yeast fermentation and little to no acidification. The team follows a minimal intervention approach to winemaking yet intensive sorting and care is taken when receiving the grapes. We use France’s most recognised coopers (mostly from Taransaud, Boutes and Sylvain) to ensure a gentle and precise elevage, preserving the identity of the terroir of Glenelly. Hygiene is of utmost importance in the cellar and a combination of both hot water and ozonated water is used for cleaning.