Tabula Rasa South Ridge CY95

Pork, Rich fish (salmon, tuna etc), Vegetarian, Poultry

The 2017 season will be remembered for its intense warm and dry conditions leading up to veraison. Despite vines being resilient to water-stress, this season put vine physiology to the test. In 2017, Oak Valley received 18% less rain than 2016 and 43% less than the 5-year average (1,054mm) with the water table already low from the less than average rainfall in the 2016 and 2015 seasons. An unusually hot August resulted in early and uneven budding on Chardonnay and Pinot which made for challenging farming. With almost no rain during flowering and berry set, irrigation was critical to safeguard quality. Then, strangely, the veraison period was one of the coolest on record over the past 5 years which offered some relief. Despite the challenges and overall dry conditions, fruit quality was excellent due to lower yields, smaller berries and fewer bunches per vine. The cool veraison period and lower cropping produced wines with elegance, concentration, linear acidity and very fine varietal expression.

Barrel maturation for 10 months before bottling.

Fruit is hand-picked from selected vines within our South Ridge block, placed into lugs and meticulously hand sorted at the winery. Whole bunches are directed into the press and gently pressed to obtain only the best free run juice and a very low recovery of less than 600 litres per ton. The high solid juice undergoes spontaneous fermentation in barrel, with no added yeast or enzymes. The vineyard specific indigenous yeast makes a large contribution to the final unique identity of the wine. Some indigenous malolactic fermentation takes place, but is mostly discouraged in order to retain the focus from natural acidity. A careful approach to oak maturation using lightly toasted French oak from artisanal Burgundy cooperages encourages finesse, balance and allows the fruit to come to the fore.

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.