in the vineyard : This wine was made from the grapes of two Shiraz vineyards
on Uitkyk; one a 15 year old block planted in 1995 and the
other a younger vineyard planted in 2003.
Both these vineyards are cultivated on the estate in deep,
red, decomposed granite soil and face N to NW at 280 –
330m above sea level. The vines are grafted on nematoderesistant
rootstocks (R110) and pruned to optimize yield and
quality. 2010 was a year of low yields and an average of 3
tons per hectare was achieved on these two blocks, thus
giving very intense fruit flavours. Both vineyards received
supplementary irrigation in January 2010.
Uitkyk Estate is 600ha with 150ha under vines. Other
cultivars planted on the estate are: Chardonnay, Sémillon,
Chenin blanc, Viognier, Pinot Grigio, Cabernet Sauvignon,
Merlot, Shiraz, Pinotage, Sangiovese, Mourvédre, Petit
Verdot and Pinot noir. During the 2010 vintage 621 tonnes
were harvested at the cellar.
in the cellar : The grapes were hand picked at 25- 26.5°B between 10-19
March 2010. Fermentation took place in open fermenters at
26-28°C until dry. Pure yeast culture (NT116 and D254) was
used and the fermentation finished in 8 days. After pressing,
some of the wine was transferred to barrels and some to
tanks, allowing malolactic fermentation to finish; thereafter it
was racked twice during the maturation period of 17-20
months. A combination of French (45%), American (32%)
and Hungarian (23%) barrels were used of which 26% were
new and 64% second fill barrels. 12% Cabernet Sauvignon
was blended in afterwards to bring an extra dimension of depth and complexity. Bottling took place in December
2011.