in the vineyard : Service Area:
Merlot: 9.5 ha
Cabernet Franc: 4.3 ha
Terroir: The Merlot vineyard is planted on N-NW; SW-W and N, S facing slopes from 160m-200m above sea-level. These blocks are planted on the following soil types nl: Swartland, Tukulu, Vilafonte and Glenrosa. These soils varies from medium to heavy textured, with a clay content that varies from 15-20%. The Cabernet franc is planted on a S, SW slope Tukulu soil.
Vineyard Age:
Merlot: 8 - 19 years
Cabernet franc: 8 years
Density/Block: 3000-3500 vines per hectare
Rootsock: Richter 99; Richter 110
Soil Preparation: Mechanical preparation and adjusting of the pH with lime.
in the cellar : Basic Cellar Procedure: Received grapes during the morning. Crushing and de-stemming and the mash are pumped to Marionette fermentation tanks. We did 3 days of cold maceration. Yeast was then added so that fermentation could start. Fermentation temperature was held between 18° - 30° C.
Pump-Overs: Aerated pump-over 4 times per day with moving one times the volume of the tank with every pump-over
Maceration: 15 - 25 days
Press: Bucher Pneumatic press. The first press-wine went with the free-run and the next press-wine was kept aside and treated separately
Malolactic Fermentation: Malo-lactic fermentation done in Stainless Steel tanks
Maturation: 18 Months in French oak barrels, 20% new oak