Blanc de Blancs

Grilled prawn salad, sushi, chocolate-dipped strawberries.

Most of the soils in the valley which are suitable for farming are situated on steep slopes. Quartz sandstone, which belongs to the Table Mountain Sandstone group, appears against the higher- lying mountains. Good decomposed shale soils, from the Malmesbury group of soils, are the predominant soils on the farm. These soils usually have dark brown topsoil with a yellow- brown structure and less sandstone subsoil. These soils tend to have a high water-retention capacity, are high in organic matter and usually have no chemical limitation, resulting in vigorous growth. Lower in the valley and along the rivers are dark alluvial soils which also deliver very vigorous growth. These soils are not suitable for wine grape production due to growth being too vigorous coupled with a high risk of rot.

The ‘cuvee’ is bottled for the second fermentation in the bottle and the wines are stored at 13°C – 15°C. The wines are matured for a further four years on the lees at around 14°C. Disgorgement takes place and the wine is kept on the cork for at least 8 months before being released onto the market.

To ensure optimum quality, all the vineyards and blocks are kept separately, as well as the free-run and second press-fractions. The juice is settled and racked off its lees and fermentation commences after yeast inoculation. Approximately 20% of the Blanc de Blancs is barrel-fermented and the base wine settled and racked off its lees. The blending of the ‘cuvee’ takes place after 12 weeks and the wine is then protein- and cold-stabilised.

Anthonij Rupert Wyne was founded on the farm L’Ormarins in Franschhoek. Originally owned by the late Anthonij Rupert who passed away in 2001 the farm was eventually taken over by his brother Johann Rupert in 2003 and the brand named after him. It was Johann Rupert who constructed a state-of-the-art winemaking facility catapulting the farm into a prestigious wine estate and the beginnings of what is now a sprawling enterprise. The focus is on terroir specific wines and therefore the ranges are made from a number of sites. Each site offers optimum varietal specific growing conditions allowing Anthonij Rupert Wyne to adhere to the requirements of their different brands.