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Durbanville Hills Bastion 2011

Colour: Ruby red.
Nose: Sweet red plums with hints of cherry, pepper and sweet spice on the nose.
Taste: A full-bodied wine with a soft and velvety mouth-feel leading to lingering, ripe tannins and plenty ripe red fruit on the mid-palate.

An ideal companion to a traditional South African braai (barbeque), roast duck, cottage pie and Boerenkaas.

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variety : Cabernet Sauvignon [ 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 50% Shiraz ]

winery : Durbanville Hills Wine

winemaker : Martin Moore and Wilhelm Coetzee

wine of origin :

analysis : alc : 14.23 % vol rs : 1.89 g/l pH : 3.69 ta : 5.55 g/l

type : Red style : Dry body : Full taste : Fruity

pack : Bottle size : 0 closure : Cork

AWARDS

2013 Veritas Wine Awards - Bronze Medal
Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show 2012 - Bronze
International Wine Challenge 2012 - Commended
Decanter World Wine Awards 2012 - Bronze

in the vineyard :

Background

Nine leading vineyard owners in the Durbanville district joined forces with Distell to create Durbanville Hills with the aim of promoting the regional individuality of this prime wine-growing area. The striking Durbanville Hills cellar sits on the side of a series of rolling hills with magnificent views of Table Mountain and Table Bay - the very geography that lies at the heart of what makes the wines so unique. The Durbanville ward is officially considered one of the Cape's two coolest wine regions, thanks to the sea breezes that drift inland from False Bay and Table Bay and the late afternoon mists that bathe the slopes. These conditions are ideal for the slow ripening of the grapes, allowing them to develop their full-flavoured, intense character. Grapes are sourced only from the shareholder- growers, all of whom farm within the limited appellation of Durbanville. Meticulous crop control limits yields and promotes concentration of varietal flavour. Cellarmaster Martin Moore uses highly advanced cellar technology to ensure optimal extraction of colour and flavour.

Sustainable practices include maintaining the disciplines imposed by International Environmental Standard ISO 140001 such as in the treatment of waste water back to irrigation quality. In all its vineyards the growing practices prescribed by IPW (Integrated Production of Wine) are followed. These are designed to sustain natural resources. In addition, the members protect on their farms 210 ha of endangered Renosterveld as part of the Biodiversity Wine Initiative BWI).

Bastion

The oldest surviving building in South Africa is the Castle in Cape Town, built over a 13 year period between 1666 and 1679 to replace the small clay fort of Commander Jan van Riebeeck built in 1652. The pentagonal fortification boasts five bastions from where cross fire could protect the maritime replenishment station and it's Commander, who turned out to be the Cape's first winemaker. The bastions inspired the architects that designed the Durbanville Hills Winery to supply the cellar with its very own bastion ensuring an outlook point over Table Bay with magnificent Table Mountain on the one side and Robben Island on the other.

The vineyards (Vineyard Consultant: Drikus Heyns)

The unique character of this wine lies in the influence of the different vineyards from which the grapes were sourced. The grapes were selected from various north-east facing, low-yield vineyards, mostly located around 250 m above sea level and grown in deep red soils with good water retention properties. The Cabernet Sauvignon was sourced from the centre valley’s medium high slopes whilst the Shiraz block is on a slightly higher location where the wind helps to control the vigorous growth so typical of this variety.

about the harvest: The Shiraz grapes were picked in late March before shriveling set in, when the tannins and fruit had reached optimum ripeness. The Cabernet Sauvignon was picked three weeks later at full ripeness.

in the cellar : After 24 hours of cold soaking, the must was fermented on the skins (between 26ºC and 28ºC) in closed, specially designed auto fermenters (until dry). During this period the maximum fruit, colour and tannin extraction from the skins was made possible through very soft, continuous timer-regulated pump-over cycles. To soften the texture, the wine was left on the skins for one week after the fermentation period.

Controlled malolactic fermentation took place in tank after which the Cabernet Sauvignon and the Shiraz were oak matured for 12 months, using predominantly French oak, utilising a small percentage new oak together with older wood as well as wood alternatives, before blending. This is done to prevent over wooding thus preserving the elegance of our cool climate fruit. Surprisingly the perfect blend turned out to be a 50/50 combination of the two varietals, bringing out the best in both cultivars.

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