Reserve Sauvignon Blanc Chenin Blanc

The varietals were harvested on different dates with the Sauvignon Blanc being early Feb and Chenin Blanc three weeks later. The grapes were gently pressed to avoid any harsh phenols. After settling, the juice was racked and fermented separately at cool temperatures and left on the lees to enhance depth of flavour and texture. The Sauvignon Blanc was kept fresh in tank while the Chenin Blanc went to fifth fill French oak barrels for development.

Vines are drip-irrigated to ensure optimal ripening and trained on the 5-wire Perold trellis system. Planted in soils consisting of weathered granite on a clay base. The nearby Atlantic Ocean (False Bay) has an additional cooling effect on the vineyards during the ripening season. Stellenbosch had another real good winter with sufficient rain and cold for the vines to rest and build up reserves before the start of bud towards September. Cool and mild weather conditions prevailed until end Feb, which pushed the start of harvest out by 14days to the norm. Vineyard stress were minimal and fewer irrigation cycles was needed. End of Feb and through Apr there were a few hot spells broken up by cool days in between. These conditions led to cultivars ripen on their own time. Harvest only finished mid-April and crop yields were normal with the later varietals (Cab/Shiraz) down by 20%. Wine quality was very good overall.

After 9 months of maturation the wine was blended and stabilized before bottling commenced.