Fable Lion's Whisker 2010

Colour: Bright crimson red.
Bouquet: A rustic nose of bright red fruits, subtle overtones of spice, with restraint and minerality.
Palate: The palate is robust yet subtle with a rustic complexity, savoury notes richness and length. The finish is lingering and layered.

variety : Shiraz [ 83% Syrah, 17% Mourvèdre ]

winery : Fable Mountain Vineyards

winemaker : Rebecca Tanner

wine of origin : Western Cape

analysis : alc : 14.14 % vol rs : 2.4 g/l pH : 3.66 ta : 5.6 g/l va : 0.57 g/l so2 : 96 mg/l fso2 : 32 mg/l

type : Red style : Dry wooded

pack : Bottle size : 0 closure : Cork

AWARDS

2010 Vintage: 4½ in John Platter

ageing : Drink now up to 5 - 8 years.br /

in the vineyard : Source of Grapes
The fruit for the Lion's Whisker all comes from the Estate farm. The vines are approximately 10 years old and planted in Glen Rosa soils based on Malmesbury shale. The vineyards are planted on northwest facing slopes adjacent to the Witzenberg Mountains in Tulbagh.

The fruit is treated with the same respect as the Bobbejaan but is made of the Syrah parcels or blocks that do not make it into our top blend. The Mourvèdre on the site is devoted to the Lion's Whisker and is farmed with minimal intervention. This gives a lifted Mourvèdre character with underlying site characteristics. All the vineyards are treated with the utmost quality in mind, which means we take on an agroecological approach to farming.

about the harvest: The grapes are picked and brought to the cellar in the early hours of the morning in small lug boxes.

in the cellar : Here they are put over the sorting table and gently crushed and de-stemmed into open concrete fermenters. A portion of whole bunches are also added to the Syrah and about 50% whole bunches are added to the Mourvèdre. At the crushing stage 25ppm SO2 is added but no other additions are made.

After about 4 days, fermentation begins with indigenous yeasts, which are cultivated naturally in our biodynamic vineyards. Once the fermentation begins the wine is punched down two to three times a day. Temperatures do not exceed 30 degrees centigrade and fermentation generally lasts from 7 to 10 days. After fermentation the wine stays on skins for a further 4 to 6 weeks before being drained through the small basket press and pressed straight to barrel where the wine undergoes natural malolactic fermentation. The wine is racked once after a year and is blended and bottled after 18 months. The Lion's Whisker is a blend of Syrah and Mourvèdre and is 100% hand made with love and care.

Maturation
18 months in tight-grained 500L French oak barrels a third new.

email the winery

email this page

find our wines in :

OTHER VINTAGES

Fable Lion's Whisker 2010

Shiraz

Rebecca Tanner