The Mysteries Die Onderstok 2017

Produced from 43 year old dryland farmed, Carignan bush vines that were planted by the legendary viticulturist, Desiderius Pongraz on 20 different root stocks. These site specific vines that we have inherited produce wines of unique character that are not easily found elsewhere in the Swartland. With this wine we aim to showcase this cultivar and the true character it shows from growing unirrigated on our terroir whilst withstanding the test of time even in the driest of years.

Terroir What makes Lammershoek’s terroir unique is the harsh and extreme conditions where under the vines grow. With warm summer days and prevailing south eastern winds in the afternoon from the West Coast, which is 35km as the crow flies from Lammershoek, cools the earth’s surface down at night. The soil which consists mostly of Lammershoek decomposed granite combined with the slopes against the Paardeberg gives a unique organoleptically golden string throughout the range of wines. Climate The vines are grown in a Mediterranean climate, the summer is warm, and the air is dry. In the afternoon the eastern, south eastern wind usually picks up to cooldown the earth’s surface at night. Winter is cold, this is the rainy season where the annual rainfall is +- 400mm. Snow falls on the surrounding mountain tops about 50km away which supports the cold winters

Lammershoek Decomposed Granite and Sandy Soil

Lammershoek’s philosophy is that the biggest part of winemaking takes place in the vineyard throughout the year. A minimalistic approach is followed in the wine style, which allows the opportunity to express the terroir in the bottle. On Lammershoek the decision on when to pick the grapes is based on tasting the berries. The grapes are harvested in the morning by hand, they are then sorted by hand before being crushed and destemmed. White berries are pressed immediately and left for settling overnight, the clean juice is racked off the sediment the following day. Red grapes are destemmed, and fermentation takes place with the skins, although there are some varieties that are fermented as whole bunch. Fermentation takes place spontaneously from natural yeast found on the vines. Fermentation and maturation methods of the wines vary from 3rd and 4th fill 500L French oak barrels, French oak foudres, cement tanks and stainless-steel tanks, these all add value as different components in the style of the winemaking. After bottling the wines are left to age in the bottle, the winemaker does regular tastings to decide the release date of the wine.

500l French oak barrel