Chardonnay

2011

Notes of lime and peach flavours. Well balanced with great freshness and texture. Unoaked. Understated, but persistent on finish.

VINEYARDS

We selected vineyards in the Robertson area for this wine. Chardonnay has over the years, become synonymous with the Robertson area. Vineyards from the chalky Robertson soils tend to produce wines with good concentration and minerality, which is very important for us.

THE 2010/11 GROWING SEASON

A year characterized by huge climatic differences, which resulted in a small crop with lots of concentration. Low winter rains and a very dry summer played a major part in the smaller crop. The start of the growing season was cool with lots of wind, which led to uneven flowering. Windy conditions prevailed until mid-February and were particularly strong during December. Harvest started 6 – 10 days earlier than normal due to the dry, windy conditions. The harvest period was also very compact due to the dry conditions and small crop.

WINEMAKING

Hand-harvesting was done only in the early morning. Grapes were de-stemmed and the juice separated from skins using a bag press. Settling took place overnight at a temperature of approx 12°C. Half of the juice was inoculated with yeast, while the rest was allowed to ferment naturally at a temperature of 16 to 18°C. After completion of fermentation, it was left on the primary lees for another month in order to add more weight and complexity to the wine. It was sulphered and left to age on the fine lees until bottling.

ANALYSIS

Alc 13.5%
TA 5.50 g/l
pH 3.51
RS 2.8g/l

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