L'illa

The L'illa Eilandia Noble Late Harvest of Winery Newton Johnson matches generally quite well with dishes of shellfish, lean fish or fruity desserts such as recipes of valencian paella, back of cod with old-fashioned mustard or express cherry clafoutis.

The focus at Newton Johnson is ever more on perfecting techniques in the vineyard and cellar that resonate the best with their conditions. The sloped vineyards face the southern winds of the cold Atlantic which couple freshness with the linearity and floral notes produced in the wines by the granite soils. It is a discovery of this translation from the farm that encourages them to make wines free from the distortion of modern convention and convenience – wines with purity of flavour and natural expression.

Newton Johnson Vineyards is owned and managed by the Newton Johnson family. The farm is based in the upper Hemel en Aarde Valley near the seaside town of Hermanus an hour and a half’s drive out of Cape Town. This is a popular tourist destination famous for some of the most spectacular land-based whale watching in the world lush indigenous fynbos a floral kingdom home to 1500 species and exclusive to the Cape mountain walks and bike trails. Led by Dave a Cape Wine Master with a thesis on Pinot Noir and his wife Felicity (nee Newton) the Newton Johnson family moved to the Upper Hemel en Aarde Valley in 1995 built a cellar and started planting vines shortly thereafter. This enthusiasm for wine and Pinot noir in particular was passed on to and eagerly adopted by his sons Bevan and Gordon. They in turn have taken this family cellar and vineyards to new heights in exploring the nuances of this grape and their vineyards.