Apogee Pinot Noir

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The grapes were crushed into small 1.5ton fermenters. A cold soak period of 3 days prior to natural fermentation took place, which lasted 2 weeks. A further 4-5 days on the skins post ferment was allowed.

These Walker Bay vineyards of Hemel – en - Aarde Ridge are situated within close proximity to the Atlantic Ocean. The maritime climate being more “temperate” in style, where parallel mountain ranges channel the southerly sea breezes through the appellation during the summer. These winds in turn bring regular sea mists and overcast conditions to the valley and with it more even temperatures. The average temperature is 19° C and rainfall, approximately, 750mm per year. All grapes were harvested by hand in cool early morning temperatures. The specific vineyard is composed of clone 115 and 777, but only the 115 was used for this wine in 2016. The highest altitude bearing Pinot block on the farm is used which allows slow ripening, building a wine with texture without being under pressure for fast sugar accumulation.

The wine was then pressed off to barrel for maturation. It spent 10 months in 100% new oak, and was then transferred to 3rd fill barrels for a further 6 months. Only a rough filtration took place at bottling.