Tabula Rasa PN777 Pinot Noir

Roasted Lamb

Winter of 2021 was slightly colder and wetter than both the winters of 2019 and 2020. The wet and cool soils delayed budburst slightly but we were happy to see the vines bud very evenly. Spring of 2021 was slightly drier than normal and luckily we did not experience much wind during flowering. These conditions gave us a good crop set for the first time in 3 years with limited millerandage. The ripening phase from January to March was on average 1º Celsius warmer than our long term average and we also experienced a highly unusual heat wave at the end of January that lasted 2 days. On some of our better drained sites we saw some heat and drought stress which is unusual in Elgin. Luckily, our clay rich shale soils helped to alleviate the impacts of this warmer vintage and we were able to harvest optimally ripe grapes at lower sugars with good natural acidity. Harvest 2022 started on 7 February with a new and exciting Chardonnay block that have added one more clone to our arsenal, Dijon clone 76, with the Pinot Noirs following closely behind. This vintage has given us very expressive, aromatic and textured wines yet balanced out with the typical Elgin freshness and acidity.

Fruit is hand picked from selected vines within these single-vineyards, placed into lugs and meticulously hand sorted at the winery. Grapes are gently destemmed to whole berries with a discretionary portion of whole bunches, into small, open-top fermenters. After 5 days of cold maceration, spontaneous fermentation ensues. 2 Gentle punch downs per day provides gentle colour and flavour extraction. After basket pressing and settling, the wines are moved to barrels for malolactic fermentation and maturation of 10 months. A careful approach to maturation using lightly toasted barrels from artisanal coopers in Burgundy encourages finesse, balance and allows the unique vineyard characteristics to be emphasized. Extended bottle maturation provided until we feel that sufficient complexity has developed to provide the best representation of the vineyard. New oak complement is 50%.

Oak Valley is situated high along the Groenlandberg Mountain Range in one of the coolest wine growing regions in South Africa; Elgin. Attention to detail in the vineyards and our minimalist intervention approach in the cellar is what shapes our cool climate wine styles. Oak Valley’s signature is elegance.