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Citrusdal Mountain, South Africa
The grapes were hand sorted and whole bunch pressed. The juice is very lightly settled (we like very cloudy raw juice) with no additions to the raw juice, wild fermentation in one 2000L Foudre, four years old. Fermentation lasted about one month. The wine was kept on lees for round twelve months, then rested in tank on fine lees without fining for a further six months prior to bottling. Very simple, careful winemaking. The nose is vivid and pure, yet near impossible to pin down. Is that grapefruit swirling in the air? Or pear? Or neither, nor both? The wine makes you want to sit down or at least steady yourself. The palate is a long, bristling arc of sour fruit and citrus oil; the finish lingers on in a steady hum. Some say that there is enough electricity in one of these bottles to power a modest house for an hour or so! Pair with buttery Snapper fillets on braised fennel or succulent roast turkey.
The grapes were hand sorted and whole bunch pressed. The juice is very lightly settled (we like very cloudy raw juice) with no additions to the raw juice, wild fermentation in one 2000L Foudre, four years old. Fermentation lasted about one month. The wine was kept on lees for round twelve months, then rested in tank on fine lees without fining for a further six months prior to bottling. Very simple, careful winemaking. The nose is vivid and pure, yet near impossible to pin down. Is that grapefruit swirling in the air? Or pear? Or neither, nor both? The wine makes you want to sit down or at least steady yourself. The palate is a long, bristling arc of sour fruit and citrus oil; the finish lingers on in a steady hum. Some say that there is enough electricity in one of these bottles to power a modest house for an hour or so!
Pair with buttery Snapper fillets on braised fennel or succulent roast turkey.
Varietal / Blend: Chenin Blanc
Decant: Recommended
Closure: Cork
Farming Practices: Sustainable
Alheit Vineyards is a family business started in 2010 by husband and wife team Chris and Suzaan Alheit. They met at Stellenbosch University, fell in love, travelled the world together, got married, then travelled some more. Eventually they settled on Hemelrand farm close to Hermanus and started their project. "Our goals are simple. We want to make wines with a clear sense of Cape identity. We want to show that the Cape’s vinous heritage is worth celebrating and protecting. We love old vineyards. We love dry farming. We love bushvines. We think that “ordinary grapes” are in fact wonderful. We believe that great things are possible here in the Cape, and that we are now just scratching the surface of what can be done. We believe that quality and beauty in wine come from the vineyard alone. The true wonder of wine is revealed when all the nonsense and lies are stripped away. Therefore, we practice simple and careful winemaking: no yeasts, no enzymes, no acidification, no sulphur before ferment, no blocking malo, no new barrels, no fining etc. No manipulation. This is the core principle we adhere to. We cannot in good conscience talk about the importance of place if we’re manipulating the wine. We’re hoping to find the voice of the land, not the mark of the winemaker."
