Asara Noble Late Harvest 2010

Flavours of rich yellow fruit graces the palate followed by a well rounded characteristics that will leave you craving more. The, still fresh, acidity lightens the mid palate, reducing the sweetness slightly and introducing a burst of pineapple.

The lingering nuances of peaches and apricots would marry very well with a well balanced cheese platter or a rich chocolate soufflé.

variety : Chenin Blanc [ 100% Chenin Blanc ]
winemaker : Francois Joubert
wine of origin : Stellenbosch
analysis : alc : 12.5 % vol  rs : 95 g/l  pH : 3.75  ta : 9.5 g/l  
type : Dessert  style : Sticky  body : Full  taste : Fruity  
pack : Bottle  closure : Cork  

AWARDS
2012 Veritas Awards - Silver Medal
2012 Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show - Bronze
in the vineyard : This vintage brought noble botrytis to our Chenin Blanc grapes at the top of the Estate. The altitude is ca. 230 meters above sea level. Cool ocean breezes spilling in from nearby False Bay ensures the perfect environment for the production of good quality Chenin Blanc on this site.

As a winemaker, your vines are your pride and joy. Every year, we hold our breath and await the first sign of the noble rot taking over our Chenin Blanc. Rot is not usually an occurrence that one hopes for, but sometimes the bad can be really good.

Noble rot (Botrytis cinerea) infects the bunches and slowly starts to dehydrate the berries, concentrating the sugars and flavours while imparting the distinctive Noble character to the grapes.

about the harvest: When the sugar concentration is high enough we harvest the grapes in small 20kg crates.

in the cellar : We hand sort every bunch to make sure that we select only the infected bunches of grapes. We then whole bunch press to minimize the loss of juice and ferment it in four wooden barrels. The fermentation will stop naturally at roughly 12.5% alcohol leaving a high residual sugar content in the wine. We wood age the noble for another year on its lees to give more structure and age ability to the wine before getting it ready for bottling.

Noble wine is a true passion for me as a winemaker. Nothing compares to the stress, the hard decisions you have to make or the difficult times that it brings, but creating this little piece of heaven makes it all worth it.

find our wines in :

OTHER VINTAGES

Chenin Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc
Chenin Blanc