Stellenzicht Golden Triangle Shiraz 2006

Colour: Rich, dark intensity with hues of ruby and garnet with faint tinges of purple around the edges.
Bouquet: Wonderful primary fruit flavours of plum, and raspberry with secondary nuances of cloves, mocha and white pepper.
Taste: Full-bodied and ripe with an abundance of red fruit flavours and sweet prunes. The ample ripe tannins are balanced by the fresh acidity at the end and the wine balances well its firm structure and elegant finesse.

It will enhance most venison dishes (especially if combined with bacon) and pairs perfectly with wild mushroom risotto.

variety : Shiraz [ 100% Shiraz ]
winemaker : Guy Webber
wine of origin : Stellenzicht
analysis : alc : 14.29 % vol  rs : 2.0 g/l  pH : 3.54  ta : 6.1 g/l  so2 : 91 mg/l  
type : Red  style : Dry  body : Full   wooded
pack : Bottle  closure : Cork  

ageing : Very enjoyable while youthful but added cellaring will enhance the complexity further and round off the "teenage" arrogance. Suggested cellaring of 5 - 8 years is recommended.

in the vineyard : Background
Flanked by the Helderberg and Stellenbosch Mountain, between Stellenbosch and the False Bay coast, lies an exceptional tract of land that benefits from terroirs eminently suited to the cultivation of the highest quality wine grapes. This jewel in the crown of the magnificent Stellenbosch wine-growing region is known as the Golden Triangle. At its core lies Stellenzicht.

The award-winning Stellenzicht range reserves its Golden Triangle label for those wines which most eloquently demonstrate the unique terroir of this special part of the Helderberg, home to some of South Africa's most exceptional wines.

Vineyard Location
Planted between 1989 and 2001, the vineyards are grown on slopes facing west and northwest in decomposed granite and Table Mountain sandstone soils. The yield average was 6.33 tons per hectare.

The climatic conditions for this vintage were characterised by lower-than-normal summer temperatures except for the heat waves experienced in February, just before harvest. These hot February temperatures were thankfully offset by above average rains during this period and the fruit thus ripened very well.
Viticulturists: Eben Archer & Johan Mong

about the harvest: The grapes were harvested both by hand and mechanically between 8 and 20 March at an average of 24.7° Balling.

in the cellar : As fruit from five different individual vineyards was used, the fruit from each of these vineyards was picked, vinified and matured separately before being blended. The vinification processes was similar for each with maturation/oaking figures given below being an average for the blend.

After destalking and crushing, the mash was fermented in stainless steel tanks before being removed from the skins after five days. Fermentation took place at between 26° and 28° C with pump-overs taking place around 8 times per day.

Malolactic fermentation was spontaneous and took place in both tank and barrel, depending on the batch. At the completion of malolactic fermentation, the wines were each racked and returned/transferred to barrel for their maturation periods.

Barrel maturation took place over 15 months in a combination of French (58%), American (30%) and Eastern European (12%) oaks with only 25% of these barrels being new.

Bottling took place on 23 October 2007 with a total of 6372 cases being produced.

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