Heldervallei

Ideal with white meat, charcuterie and lighter food.

In 2021 Cinsault from Stellenbosch shows a remarkable salinity being expressed in the wines and this could be due to the way this terroir has responded after the first drought breaking rain cycle. Some unexpected cooler weather for February also helped retain a fresh purity to the fruit and longer hangtime gave decent concentration. More fynbos tea notes than your normal fruit forward typical nose from granite Cinsault.

Aged on its fine lees for 10 months in older 225 L barrels as well as 400’s. No new oak. MLF spontaneously in barrel. Bottled Unfiltered and Unfined.

In the cellar I like to keep the purity of the vineyard itself captured as uncompromised as possible. Having my winery nestled close to Sinai Hill, it is practical enough to get handharvested grapes into the winery fresh off the vine in the morning. Heldervallei undergoes a long natural fermentation in open top fermenters. No additions here or manupiltaions of the pure grapes, except carefully judged SO2. 30% Wholeclusters and 70% destemmed. This way I get to know this block’s fresh and brighter side, while aiming to balance texture and some bushvine complexity that might hide in the crushed skins. Basket pressed to barrel.

Bernhard Bredell: Why the name “Scions of Sinai”? Scion = In plant biology referring to the top part of a plant/vine that exists above the ground. We say “The Scion cultivar of that vine is Chenin blanc and the rootstock cultivar is Richter 99″. In old English literature the word “Scion” also refers to “the descendant of…”. Making it applicable to refer to myself as a “scion” from Sinai Hill as well as the vines. Plural “Scions”. Pronounced: SIGH-ENS. Sinai = Referring to Sinai Hill not the famous biblical mountain but the folk name for the foothill in the lower Helderberg region of Stellenbosch where the Bredell’s have farmed with old dryland bushvines for many generations. Luckily some of them are still rooted and a great part of them owned by my cousin Pieter Bredell (also 7th generation Bredell). Pronounced: SIN-EYE. It’s me and these couple of old bushvines… together we are by definition the Scions of Sinai. The descendants of Sinai Hill.