Colour: Rich dark red.
Bouquet: Violets and blackberry, with hints of spice, leather and oak.
Taste: The palate is spicy and rich with red berry fruits. Subtle vanilla sweetness complements the tannins and secures a mouth-filling aftertaste.
This rich and powerful wine would complement all red meat such as venison, pot roasts, robust lamb or hearty beef dishes.
in the vineyard : Background
Established by the French Huguenots in 1693 on the slopes
of the Simonsberg Mountains situated between Paarl and
Franschhoek, Plaisir de Merle is a rare gem.
A Distell showpiece, this 974 hectare estate in Simondium,
Paarl, has earned international acclaim for its white and red
wines. About 400 hectares are planted with a variety of noble
grape cultivars such as Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc,
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc,
Shiraz and Malbec. An area of only about 80 hectares of
prime vineyards has been set aside for the Plaisir de Merle
cellar. Winemaker Niel Bester attributes the success of his
wines to being able to work with great fruit coming from a
very unique terrain and the invaluable input from his
viticulture team.
The vineyards
The diversity of the soils, slopes and elevations is closely
linked with the quality of Plaisir de Merle wines. Well-drained
weathered granite soils (predominantly Clovelly, Tukulu and
Hutton) with good water retention allow minimal irrigation
with most vineyards being dry-land and situated on the
south-eastern slopes of the Simonsberg.
Viticulturist: Freddie le Roux
The farm is situated on the east and northeast facing slopes
of the Simonsberg Mountain, and is bordered by the towns of
Stellenbosch, Franschhoek and Paarl. The grapes were
harvested at 24.3° Balling on the March 3, from a si ngle, 10-
year-old vineyard, located about 300 metres above sea-level
where high mountain peaks shade the vineyards from the
hot, late afternoon sun. This slows down ripening, resulting
in wines with a typical rich fruit complexity and well-ripened
tannins.
in the cellar : As Petit Verd ot
has an abundance of colour, the juice was gently pumped
over the skins daily to extract colour, tannins and flavour.
After fermentation the wine was left on the skins for only one
day to avoid the extraction of harsher tannins. It was then
racked off, transferred to 300-litre new French oak barrels
where malolactic fermentation was completed. After another
racking, the wine was matured in the barrels for 16 months.
Total prodution: 334 cases