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Paul Cluver 'Close Encounter' Riesling 2012

Made in a more luscious style with an alcohol under 9%. Juicy pineapple and lime aromas are complemented with hints of jasmine and honeysuckle.

Quite a versatile wine and a welcome alternative for the Sauvignon blanc- and Chardonnay- weary palates. Works well with spicy food and is great with sushi. Carpaccio and beef tartar are interesting partners too.

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variety : Riesling [ 100% Riesling ]

winery : Paul Cluver Family Wine Estate

winemaker : Andries Burger

wine of origin : Elgin

analysis : alc : 8.75 % vol rs : 35.4 g/l pH : 2.94 ta : 7.98 g/l va : 0.36 g/l so2 : 115 mg/l fso2 : 33 mg/l

type : White style : Sweet body : Medium

pack : Bottle closure : Cork

ageing : Will age beautifully.

in the vineyard : Paul Cluver Wines currently makes three styles of Riesling wines. In addition to Close Encounter Riesling, a drier style Riesling and a dessert wine is also made.

Name
The Riesling vineyard is located close to a railway track that winds through the Paul Cluver Wine estate. During the Riesling harvest in 2009, our vineyard manager accidently drove into a train and was fortunate not to sustain any serious injury.

Vineyards and vines
Currently there is only one block of Riesling i.e. Weisser Riesling on the estate. It covers 4.64 hectares, which equates to 5% of the total plantings of Paul Cluver Wines. The vines were planted in 1987, making them 22 years old for this vintage. The soil varies across the block and is composed of a 'ferricrete' top layer (surficial sand and gravel masses) on decomposed Bokkeveld Shale and/or light clay. Vine orientation is East/West on North west facing slopes with an average gradient of 1:7. Height above sea level is 300 meters.

about the harvest: The Riesling block is planted in a sheltered alcove on the estate, so the windy conditions that effected other vineyard sites had no impact on berry set.

in the cellar : In addition to vineyard sorting, a second stage of bunch and berry sorting occurs at the cellar to eliminate all traces of rot. Dry ice is used abundantly. Skin contact prior to fermentation is done to extract flavor and reduce acidity - duration varies. This year it was for 12 hours. Pressing is always gentle. Only free run juice is fermented. After settling, the juice is fermented. This particular Riesling was made using a yeast strain known for slow, cool fermentation. Fermentation was stopped at the desired sugar level after which the wine was racked, stabilized and prepared for bottling.

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