Driefontein Blanc

White meats such as chicken or veal especially if accompanied by a creamy sauce or with spring vegetables such as asparagus and peas.

The Sauvignon Blanc originates from a tiny block on Driefontein, the farm against the slopes of the Helderberg where I currently live. This must be one of the coolest parcels in the Stellenbosch area with the cooling breezes off False Bay cooling it down on hot days. A minimum interference approach is taken in the vineyards to get a true reflection of the unique terroir. Vertical shoot positioned trellised vines of 8 and 12 years old were used to produce grapes in cooler pockets of Stellenbosch.

The wine spent 10 months in French oak barrels before being bottled.

This wine has been naturally fermented containing no enzymes, preservatives or stabilisers.

Jasper Raats is the shareholder, cellar master and managing director of Longridge Wine Estate, as well as partner in Vigneron Consulting, an international consulting business. The consultancy shares valuable knowledge to a select group of clients, particularly focusing on organic and biodynamic viticulture and oenology. In fact, it was through this consulting business that his relationship with Longridge first started. Jasper has established himself as one of the most talented winemakers in South Africa and first gained prominence for wines he created in New Zealand. In 2003, he started working as viticulturist and winemaker at New Zealand’s Clos Henri in the Marlborough region, developing a new vineyard and making wine for French Company, Henri Bourgeois. During this period, he also started Koru Wines, which became one of New Zealand’s top and most expensive wines. His international experience includes working in Burgundy, Pouilly Fume, Sancerre and in Napa and Sonoma under Pierre Seillan, the genial French creator of Vérité Wines.