Colour: Dark ruby.
Bouquet: Ripe berries with dollops of cherries and dark chocolate, with a hint of mint.
Taste: A rich and full-bodied palate with the cherries and chocolate following through with a touch of tobacco. The wine has a robust tannin structure.
The winemaker recommends serving it with a carpetbagger steak, roast lamb with rosemary and garlic, and a whole host of red meat stews and casseroles.
variety : Cabernet Sauvignon [ 100% Cabernet Sauvignon ]
winemaker : Schalk van der Westhuizen
wine of origin : Coastal
analysis : alc : 15.1 % vol rs : 3.3 g/l pH : 3.44 ta : 6.38 g/l
type : Red style : Dry wooded
pack : Bottle closure : Cork
in the vineyard : Background
Alto, situated on the slopes of the Helderberg Mountain in the Stellenbosch district, dates back to 1693 when it was part of a much larger farm called Groenriver (Green River), granted to a free burgher by Governor Simon van der Stel. In 1919 the owner of the farm, Hennie Malan, sold off half the land to his brother-in-law and set about planting vines on his remaining portion, focusing exclusively on red varieties. He named the smaller farm Alto, a reference to its altitude (some slopes rise as high as 500m above sea level) and his striving for excellence.
Alto has 93 hectares under vines. The trellised vineyards cling to the high granite slopes that are ideal for the cultivation of red wine varieties.
The Vineyards (viticulturist: Eben Archer)
The wine is made from the grapes of unirrigated, north-facing vines between 8 and 19 years. These vines grow in decomposed granite soils and a clay subsoil, at altitudes of 135m and 475m above sea level, with those at the higher levels cooled by False Bay breezes. A five-wire fence was used to trellis the vines, which yielded a low 4 to 5 tons, the hectare.