Patience - Ashbourne 2010 available in 2015

One of the most enjoyable winter activities on a wine estate is tasting through the various components of a blend from the barrel, discussing the possibilities, trying them, confirming them and then making up the blend.

The blend for the Ashbourne 2010 was finalised in August 2011. The wine will only be released in 2015 to enable a sufficient degree of bottle development and it will comprise 75% of Pinotage and  5% each of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petit Verdot and Syrah – all grown on the Ashbourne farm in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley.

As they put together the new blend, the team also tasted the current release which is still ageing in the bottle in the cellar. They found  a lovely meaty, savoury nose with black tea, liquorice and dark berry fruit. The palate is long and dense with fine-grained tannins, but without being too big and alcoholic and certainly not “sweet” – more mineral. At only 13.3% alcohol the wine is unusual for a top South African red blend. The 2007 is a blend of Pinotage 82%, Cabernet Sauvignon 9% and Syrah 9%. It will age for many years to come.  

The founding mission in 1996 was for Ashbourne to create South African benchmark blends – one red, one white – which belonged in the company of the world’s great benchmarks without in any way replicating them or seeking to taste like them. The wines are simply different to anything else when viewed in entirety, but do have certain stylistic and “philosophical” points of commonality with Europe.  

If varieties are of importance to the understanding of a wine, Ashbourne is probably best understood as a “Pinotage-plus” while its white wine partner, the Ashbourne Sandstone, is best understood as a “Sauvignon blanc-plus”.

Both 2007’s - the Ashbourne and the Ashbourne Sandstone - are now on the market, but availability is limited contact Talita at talitahrv@hermanus.co.za. The 2008’s will be released in November 2012.

The team is absolutely determined to make the two Ashbourne wines among the most unusual, individual and exceptional wines made in South Africa.

Posted: winestyle.biz

Source: Hamilton Russell Vineyards

Southern Right 2011 Sauvignon blanc to be released in Mid-July

With the impending sell-out of the 2010 Southern Right Sauvignon blanc, the new release of the 17th vintage – the 2011 towards the middle of July. This is a month or so earlier than usual, as a result of faster than expected sales of the 2010.

The 2011 is expected to retail for R 89.95 per bottle, 5.82% more than the 2010. This small increase is to partly accommodate a smaller harvest combined with greatly increased input costs.

The 2011 Sauvignon blanc is an extremely attractive wine, with particularly lifted aromas combining energetic green and riper tropical elements - and a slightly denser more generous mouth feel than the 2010. It maintains the typical Southern Right briny, “marine pool” characters and long intense, dry minerality. As always, a wine leaning more towards the Loire style than New Zealand.

Southern Right Sauvignon blanc is their flagship white wine that aims to build in as much complexity and structure as possible without relying on higher alcohol or residual sugar.

To achieve this they do the following:

1.       The harvest at a range of ripeness levels from 12% alcohol to 13.5% alcohol aiming for an alcohol of very close to 13%. If the alcohol is too close to 13.5% the wine inevitably has a sense of sweetness, which they do not want. The Sauvignon blanc harvest started on February 7th and finished on March 16th illustrating not only the range of sites they draw from but also the range of ripeness they harvest at as well.

2.       They use 5 different clones (including the top Loire clones) each giving its own set of characteristics, structure and flavour.

3.       They use grapes from two principal soil types – each with several structural classifications. Sandstone-derived soils for the more lifted greener aromas and edgy tension in the wine. Very clay-rich Shale-derived soils for mid-palate density and structure with more tropical aromas. In the case of the 2011, Sandstone-derived soils were 56% and Clay-rich soils were 44%.

4.       They source from 17 different vineyard sites with 45% of the grapes coming from their own vineyards in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, 7% from the Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley and 48% coming from other vineyards in the Walker Bay District.

The analysis of the 2011 Sauvignon blanc is as follows: Alcohol 13.2%, Acid 7.0g/l, and pH 3.2

Southern Right is one of the very best selling South African Sauvignon blancs in its price range and is served by the glass and by the bottle in some of the world’s finest restaurants.

Posted: Nikki Dumas - winestyle.biz

Source: Hamilton Russell Vineyards