Viura

Poultry, Rich fish (salmon, tuna etc), Spicy food, Sweet desserts, Veal

These 200 vines are rooted in an ancient riverbed approximately four metres deep. Rich, fertile silt deposited across this old floodplain in the Breede 00 River Valley sustains robust vines and fruit that carries a distinctive sense of heritage and place. The 2026 season in the Breede River and Goudini area began with sound winter dormancy, uniform budding and ideal flowering conditions. Spring and early summer were exceptionally dry - only 20.8 mm was recorded from September to January - resulting in restrained canopy growth, smaller berries and low early disease pressure. Harvest started about seven days earlier than in 2025. February rainfall and humidity briefly increased disease pressure in white vineyards, making timing and selection important. Even so, analytical results for the region s early and late white varieties were excellent, with promising flavour development in the young wines. In this Viura, the season shows as pure perfume, bright yellow-fruit definition and concentrated flavour, balanced by clear freshness.

The wine matured in the same barrels until it was racked and bottled with minimal intervention.

Both whole-bunch and freshly destemmed grapes were pressed immediately, and the juice was separated from the skins as quickly as possible. By minimising skin contact, we sought to avoid any skin-derived phenolic or reductive character and preserve a clean, pure expression of Viura. Fermentation began and concluded naturally.

Pilgrim Wines is a unique wine company, dedicated to inspire, teach and surprise. We are a small family-owned business with a passion for wine making. Well-known Winemaker Henry Kotzé (former Morgenster and now at the iconic Mulderbosch) carefully crafts the wines for owner and Viticulturist wife Riëtte Kotzé’s Pilgrim Wines brand. We do not have our own vineyards, at the moment we source our grapes from small pockets of vineyards that we have come across in our everyday paths. These distinct parcels of land, happen to be in our home-grown Stellenbosch area and the amazing Voor Paardeberg regions. We partner with like minded ethical growers and believe in leaving nothing but footprints for the next generation. We focus on innovative methods with tried and tested cultivars, as well as experimental styles with unorthodox, unfamiliar cultivars. We like to discover the new and untried pathways in the journey of grape to bottle.