Spice Route Malabar 2007

Name: Spice Route Malabar 2007
Brand: Spice Route
SKU: 30719

This vintage once again contains Petite Sirah and Tannat, adding colour and complexity to the wine. These are amongst the first Petite Sirah vineyards in South Africa and I am excited about the prospects as the vineyard matures.

variety : Shiraz [ 52% Shiraz, 24% Mourvèdre, 10% Petite Sirah, 7% Grenache, 7% Tannat ]

winery : Spice Route Winery

winemaker : Charl du Plessis

wine of origin : Swartland

analysis : alc : 14.5 % vol rs : 3.7 g/l pH : 3.55 ta : 5.9 g/l

type : Red style : Dry body : Full wooded

pack : Bottle closure : Cork

AWARDS

RECOGNITION
4½ stars - Platter's Wine Guide

PREVIOUS VINTAGES
2007: Commended - International Wine Challenge 2012

Bronze Medal - Decanter World Wine Awards 2012

2006: Gold Medal - Concours Mondial de Bruxelles 2010
2005: 92 points - Wine Spectator
2005: 4½ stars - Platters Wine Guide 2010
2004: International and Regional Trophies (Red blend over £10) - Decanter World Wine Awards 2007
2004: Gold medal - Classic Wine Trophy 2007
2004: 91 points - Wine Spectator
2004: 4½ stars - Platter's Wine Guide
2003: Gold medal - Decanter World Wine Awards 2007
2003: 90 points - Wine Spectator
2003: 4½ stars - Platter's Wine Guide

in the vineyard : Five centuries ago the ancient mariners braved uncharted seas to round the Cape of Good Hope in search of exotic spices. Their nerve and dash inspire the Spice Route philosophy. We have found our signature wine style in the rolling hills along the Cape's West Coast, where unirrigated vines produce grapes with small thick skinned berries - ripe fruit that is dense, rich and full flavoured. A passionate dedication to exceptional quality and traditional hand crafting captures the essence of this fruit in the wines of the Spice Route.

The Shiraz is from a trellised vineyard, planted on oakleaf and koffieklip soil in 1995. The Mourvèdre was planted in 2001, mainly on oakleaf soil. The Petite Sirah component hails from the maiden block in South Africa, planted in 2001. The Grenache vines are 56 years old, planted on sandy decomposed granite. And the Tannat is also from the maiden block in South Africa, planted on koffieklip soil in 2003.

about the harvest: The hand selected fruit was harvested from dryland vineyards in the Swartland.
Harvest Date: Feb to March 2007

in the cellar : Malabar is a blend of varietals, vinified and matured individually in our dedicated Malabar cellar. The fruit was hand harvested early in the morning into small lug boxes. After a bunch selection, the individual berries were hand sorted over a sorting table and fermented in open 1800kg 100% new French oak vats. The individual components were matured in French oak vats for 12 months, during which time the barrels are tasted regularly. The best barrels were selected, blended and returned to barrel for a further 10 months. The wine was bottled without being filtered. Total production for the 2007 vintage was 28 barrels.

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