Cabernet Sauvignon

The Cabernet Franc grapes were picked in late February, the Malbec early March, and the Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and the Petit Verdot were harvested in mid-March. The grapes were picked into small lug boxes and cooled overnight to about 14 degrees before being hand-sorted and crushed into small open-top fermentation vats. After being cold-soaked for a couple of days, some of the musts were inoculated with a mix of domestic and imported Bordeaux yeast. About 40% underwent fermentation with the natural yeasts. The fermentations were hand punched-down every 4 hours for the first half of fermentation and every 6-8 hours until dry. At dryness, the wine was basket-pressed and racked to barrel for malo-lactic fermentation and barrel maturation.

The grapes for this wine are from 4 different Cabernet vineyards and our best Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot vineyards, all at a mix of different elevations. Although all are on the decomposed granite soils typical of the hillsides in Jonkershoek, the soil textures vary quite a lot and that, together with the differences in elevations and clones, gives a variety of different flavour profiles to the grapes.

Only 300l French oak was used, of which about 30% were new. Bottled without fining and with no filtration after 20 months barrel maturation.