One Man Band

Pan-fried Fillet Mignon with duck liver & Madeira sauce.

Whilst 2018 experienced a cool winter to enable good vine dormancy, the rainfall was below average and followed similar conditions felt in 2015, 2016 and 2017. Sunny weather during budding led to even budding. Dry and windy conditions during spring and late spring resulted in very uneven flowering. As a result, berry set was uneven leading to some smaller berries that have good concentration of flavours. Despite dry growing conditions, unusually cool December and January slowed down ripening whilst some late rain in January helped nourish the soils and more importantly, helped the vine focus on grape ripening. The net result of the drier year is that the grapes had low pH, high natural acidity, achieved steady phenolic ripeness and plenty of intense fruit flavours. For us, 2018 is a very exciting vintage. This can be attributed to exceptional vintage conditions, but we are also starting to see the value of vineyard maturity leading to enhanced complexity and concentration in the wines.

Once pressed off, the wines undergo spontaneous malolactic fermentation in barrel where they were aged for 12-16 months, in 500L French oak barrels, of which 20% is new oak.

Our red wine vinification is very traditional. Hand harvested, before being destemmed and sorted on a vibrating table, the grapes were destemmed and not crushed. Once wild fermentation had started the skin cap was softly punched down 2 times per a day to achieve desired extraction. Post fermentation the wines underwent extended maceration; the wines were tasted regularly in order to assess the extraction level and when to press-off.

Iona is a cool-climate Elgin wine estate focused on expressing its distinctive soils and maritime-influenced vineyards through sustainable farming and minimal intervention. Best known for Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, Iona produces precise South African wines defined by freshness, purity and a strong sense of place.