Grenache

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Only a small batch of 3 tons was produced in an open fermenter. Half the grapes were destemmed and the other half was whole bunch with gentle crushing-footstomping by the cellar team. Fermentation too place with selected Rhône yeast strains at 22-26°C. Punch downs were done only twice a day.

Winter of 2017 was one of the driest in the Western Cape in the last century, fortunately for us the drought was not as bad and our winter rains were within average range. In Spring the weather was more erratic and we received very late cold fronts with icy rain in mid-September. This storm did extreme damage to our young shoots, so while we received water for irrigation the price paid was loss of half of our potential crop almost overnight. This same storm caused severe frost damage in the Robertson Valley a few days later. In late November we had a further blow with a hail storm which caused more vineyard damage and the final harvest crop was on average a very low 3.5 ton/ha. The conditions during the rest of the growing season were moderate with cool, dry weather and the small crop was handled with care to make the most of it. The result was a small concentrated vintage, compared to 2015.

The wine was barrel matured for 10 months in 100% French oak. A selection of mostly older barrels was made not to overshadow the natural grape tannins and fruit flavours