This wine exudes enticing aromas of dried spices, white pepper, violets, concentrated black fruits and hints of dark chocolate. The palate is ripe, rich, fresh and layered with decadent spicy black currant flavours. A full-bodied wine with a bold, integrated tannin structure.
When to Enjoy: With a decadent meal and on special occasions.How to Serve: Cool 18°.Our meal suggestionsRoast leg of lamb with rosemary and served with rich potato gratin, or succulent oxtail stew on a bed of sweet potato mash are our robust suggestions but try a more sublime combination too.
variety : Shiraz [ 67% Syrah, 6% Mourvèdre, 27% Grenache ]
winemaker : Jacques Viljoen
wine of origin : Stellenbosch
analysis : alc : 14.0 % vol rs : 3.0 g/l pH : 3.5 ta : 5.1 g/l
type : Red style : Dry body : Full wooded
pack : Bottle size : 750ml closure : Cork
in the vineyard : About the Estate
Zevenwacht Wine Estate, situated on the beautiful Stellenbosch Wine Route is a modern wine farm with a 300 year history. Owned and managed by the Johnson Family, the Estate has a strong commitment to historic and cultural preservation as well as conservation of the surrounding indigenous environment. Two prime farming locations provide the grapes for the Zevenwacht winery. The home vineyard on the Estate's panoramic 450 hectare maritime influenced property, supplies the majority of the grapes. The farm Zevenrivieren, situated at the crest of the Helshoogte Pass, provides winemaker, Jacques Viljoen, with a boutique selection of grapes that add to the fascinating variety of the wines.
What about the grapes?
Three different varieties were identified for this blend - Syrah, Mourvedre and Grenache. From the history of these vineyards, walking, tasting & studying them and with some extra help from aerial photographs & infrared, we hand selected pockets of vines for our Rhone Styled blend of 2010.
67% Syrah, 27% Grenache, 6% Mourvedre
And the vineyards (terroir)
The grapes come from vineyards at altitudes of 150-200 meters above sea level. All four these vineyards are on SW facing slopes. The vines are trellised on a seven-wire hedge system that allows for perfect containment of the sometimes-vigorous growth habit of these varieties. Pruned to two-bud spurs, allowing for 16 – 18 bearers per running meter.
in the cellar : We co-fermentated in open top French-oak fermenters. No destalking took place. We crushed the grapes by foot stomping and then allowed natural fermentation with regular punch downs. Fermentation temperatures hover around at ±28° C. Regular punch downs help extract intense colour and soft, pliable tannins. After fermentation the wine was racked to French oak barrels. The wine was aged for 16 months. We selected the best barrels out of these individual batches of wine. Two best blends were made and tasted in a blind benchmark tasting against some of the best Rhone blends in South Africa, before final selection and approval.