Straw Wine

Please note: Award stickers are applied at the producer's discretion and may not be present on all bottles.

The Chenin Blanc was hand-harvested, before being laid out under shade to gently desiccate for several weeks. During this time, natural evaporation reduced the berries’ water content, intensifying sugars, acidity, and flavour concentration. Once the desired levels were reached, the grape clusters were pressed and transferred to 225L barrels. Fermentation proceeded slowly and naturally with indigenous yeasts over eleven months, gradually building layered texture and complexity. The wine finished fermentation on its own when the yeasts reached their natural limits. The wine was then settled, racked, blended, and bottled unfined and unfiltered.

The two heritage Chenin Blanc vineyards traditionally selected for Mullineux Straw Wine each harvest, averaging 47 years of age and rooted in the decomposed granite soils of the Paardeberg, deliver the vibrant acidity and harmonious ripeness that are fundamental to the complexity & balance of this wine. The Swartland sunshine allows for the grapes to ripen with gently golden and freckled skins, whilst the high altitude of 400m allow for the cooling evenings to refresh the vineyard at the end of each day. The grapes were harvested on the 11th and 14th February 2025 which yielded 4 tons/ha before the drying process, and a minuscule 100L/ton = 4HL/ha after drying.

This wine was fermented and settled in 11 months in neutral 225L French oak barrels.