Beyerskloof Faith Cape Blend 2018

ageing : 

This wine will age well for 10 - 15 years.

Soil: Hutton, Clovelly and Kroonstad
Trellising: Pinotage Bush Vines - Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot on Perold 5-wire hedge

It is the third year running where we had a cool dry winter which meant not enough rain. We had less than 40% of our normal rainfall leading up to the harvest and the year before that we had 50% less. So, the big drought issues continue. We also had uneven budding during the start of growth and uneven ripening of grapes close to harvest, so sorting of the berries was a must. Also, on the positive side there was less diseases/ pests and growth vigour in the vineyards due to the dry weather. With all the negatives we expected the worse and was actually presently surprised with the yields and quality of the grapes. The start of harvest was more normal for us compared to the previous 3 vintages and that was early February. This continued until middle March where we finished with Cabernet Sauvignon. In general, the grapes were healthy, berries were very small and concentrated and our yield was the same as last year, 550ton in total. But we are still 20% down on our long-term average yield. Quality of the wines so far looks extremely good with rich dark colours and brilliant fruit on all the red cultivars. This might actually be the best even year vintage in 20 years!