variety : Merlot [ 100% Merlot ]
winemaker : Gyles Webb & Rudi Schultz
wine of origin : Stellenbosch
analysis : alc : 15.09 % vol rs : 1.5 g/l pH : 3.67 ta : 5.2 g/l
type : Red style : Dry body : Full wooded
pack : Bottle closure : Cork
in the vineyard : Varietal: Merlot - clone 192 and 348A
Root stock: R99/110
Soil type: Hutton – decomposed granite
Age of vines: Planted 1988 and 2000
Plant density: 2460 - 3200 vines per hectare
Trellising: Vertical hedge
Pruning: 2-bud spurs every 12 cm
Yield: Approximately 10.9 tons per ha
Irrigation: Supplementary drip
about the harvest: Vintage: Like 2008, there was a late start to the 2009 harvest. Long, moderate to dry warm spells led to near perfect ripening conditions. Possibly one of the best vintages the Cape has seen.
Picking date: 4th – 9th March
Grape sugar: 24.6 – 25.7
Balling Acidity: 5.0 g/l
pH at harvest: 3.4
in the cellar : Yeasts: Natural occurring yeasts
Fermentation temp: 27 Celsius
Method: De-stalked, hand sorted, crushed, pumped into stainless steel fermenters, cold soak for 2 days, pumped over twice a day for 5 days, generally with an aerated pump over in the morning and a closed circulation in the afternoon. After fermentation the wine is left on the skins for two days before pressing and then racked to barrel for malo-lactic fermentation.
Wood maturation: 18 months in French oak barrels, 40% new, balance in older barrels.