Seven Flags Chardonnay

Fish, poultry, pork and game bird dishes work well with this wine. It pairs particularly well with creamy pastas and salmon dishes.

Currently there are 14.4 hectares planted to Chardonnay on the estate, with clones including 76, 95 175, 270, 548 and 1066. The first vines were planted in 1987 and the youngest blocks in 2017. Vines range in age from 6 to 38 years. The soil is predominantly decomposed Bokkeveld Shale with underlying clay layers of varying depths. The vineyards are planted on East, Southeast facing and South- Southwest facing slopes. Height above sea level ranges from 280 to 350 meters. The grapes for the Seven Flags Chardonnay are selected from the two oldest Chardonnay vineyards on the property (9ton/ha) and the oldest vineyards in Elgin. These south facing vineyards are planted to clones 175 and 270.

The grapes were whole bunch pressed and settled without any settling agents. The juice was then transferred to barrel for fermentation, this being a 100% non-inoculated fermentation in a selection of French oak barrels. (50% new, 12% 2 fill, 19% 3 fill and the balance 4 fill.) Minimal lees stirring was done and the wine remained on the lees for a total of nine months. We like to retain as much natural acidity as possible which gives great freshness to the wine and thus no malolactic fermentation was allowed. After tasting and blending trials, the wine was blended from selected barrels; stabilised and prepared for bottling.

Paul Cluver Wines is a family owned and family run winery focused on producing world class wines that reflect the uniqueness of the cool-climate Elgin terroir. The family is proud to have pioneered the Elgin appellation and for being a leader in sustainable farming.