Kleine Zalze Cellar Selection Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2017

The 2 varieties were carefully blended to highlight the ripe dark plum Cabernet fruit on the nose and palate with Merlot contributing savoury characters and velvety tannins on the palate. This is an elegant wine that has great depth of flavour and with its great balance and wood integration this wine should age gracefully for many years to come.


variety : Cabernet Sauvignon [ Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot ]
winemaker : RJ Botha
wine of origin : Coastal Region
analysis : alc : 14.0 % vol  rs : 2.9 g/l  pH : 3.60  ta : 5.4 g/l  
type : Red  style : Dry  taste : Fruity   wooded
pack : Bottle  size : 750ml  closure : Screwcap  

ageing : With its great balance and wood integration this wine should age gracefully for many years to come.

The grapes for this wine were sourced primarily from the Stellenbosch region, with a small percentage from other areas. In 2017 we had a very dry winter season and warm dry conditions early in the growing season but slightly cooler weather in the run up to harvest. It was for this reason that very careful attention was paid to our viticulture practices to ensure optimum ripening conditions in the canopy and to achieve physiological ripeness. As always, a very careful ‘green harvest’ was carried out just after veraison to ensure even ripening and a good concentration of flavours.

about the harvest: Individual parcels were picked in the early morning between sugar levels ranging from 23.5 and 25° balling.

in the cellar : The grapes were de-stemmed only and not crushed, therefore were fermented “whole-berry”. The Cabernet Sauvignon grapes were fermented in open fermenters and regularly punched-down for optimum colour and tannin extraction. The Merlot was fermented in stainless steel tanks and pumped over, every four hours, for optimum skin and flavour extraction. After fermentation, extended skin contact was given and only the free-run juice was used. Each wine was matured for 14 months in 30% second and 70% third fill French oak barrels before final blending and bottling.

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