Vineyard Selection Cabernet Sauvignon

A fantastic companion to most meat dishes

The fruit for this wine was sourced from our own vineyards with a few selected parcels from other Stellenbosch blocks. After four consecutive dry winter seasons, the excellent rainfall in 2019 did manage to offer some relief. The effect of additional water could be seen immediately in the vineyards. We had a particularly good growing season with more vigour, which meant our viticulture team had to pay careful attention to canopy management making sure the fruit stays healthy and to ensure even ripening. The harvest itself started earlier than previous vintages and was also quite compressed with several red varieties, especially Cabernet Sauvignon, ripening earlier than usual. The grapes were healthy at harvest and had an intense concentration of flavours, promising great wines.

After primary fermentation the grapes were gently pressed and transferred to French oak barrels (40% new, 30% second fill and 30 % third fill) for 19 months before final blending.

The various blocks were harvested at optimum ripeness and vinified separately. After careful selection in the vineyard the grapes were hand sorted at the winery to ensure only the best fruit was vinified. After de-stemming, the grapes were fermented in a combination of stainless-steel tanks and traditional open-top fermenters. We used a combination of “punch down” and “pump over” at different stages during fermentation for the best possible extraction and to get balance between flavour and tannin levels. Special care was taken not to over extract the wine and maintain density without compromising elegance.

Kleine Zalze wines are marked by a classical structure and complexity matched by a vibrant flavour intensity. Discernibly South African in style, they are refreshing, beautifully balanced and well-suited to food. Our wines are made according to traditional methods with minimal cellar intervention, but supported by modern equipment.