Description
The wine has a light straw colour with a lime green tinge. On the nose you pick up complex aromas of orange blossom, melon, dried apricot and ginger spice. The first thing you notice on the palate is the tangy acidity that carries the flavours of white pear, lime and green apple. The wine has a beautiful minerality, but not without a light creamy texture from the lees contact in barrel.
Awards
92 pts Gilbert & Gaillard Rating
Certifications
Alcohol
13.5%
Analytical data
dry
Vineyard
The slope against which this 6 hectare single vineyard "Langbult Steen" is planted ensures good drainage of excess water. The slope gets most of its sun in the morning and in the afternoon the sun disappears behind the hill leaving the vines in the cooler shady conditions, protected from direct sun. In mid summer, the close proximity of the cold Atlantic Ocean has a major cooling effect as in the afternoons, the southerly winds blow from False Bay, which is a mere 15 kilometers away. The Atlantic breeze results in very cool night time temperatures and this plays a major role to preserve the natural acidity in the grapes.
Soil Type
The soil is weathered shale, aka Malmesbury Skalie, a water deposited soil which formed more than 250 million years ago when it was an ocean floor. The high level of clay in the top soil and heavier clay in the sub soils soak up the bountiful winter rain and retain the water to slowly release it to the deep roots of the old vine Steen during the long dry summers of Stellenbosch. This sustains the old vines and prevents water stress to ensure the vines can slowly ripen the bunches with ideal water availability to the vines. The very deep root system is one of the key quality benefits of very old vines. It can access water and nutrients better than what a younger vine can do.
Vinification
Grapes from our oldest Chenin Vineyard (1987) were harvested at optimal ripeness to ensure excellent flavour and balance. Grapes were whole bunch pressed for elegance and freshness. Unclarified juice was racked directly into older French oak barrels to undergo spontaneous alcoholic fermentation. The wine was aged on primary lees with regular batonage for 18 months. A combination of older 400L and 225L barrels were blended to create a complex wine with depth of flavour and freshness.
Maturation
11 months aging in large format 300L and 400L seasoned French oak barrels. A small amount of 10% new barrels were used.
