WEATHER CONDITIONS – Simonsberg, Stellenbosch
Following harvest 2021 the conditions were cool and dry, leading to later leaf fall than usual. Budding was even but occurred 7 days later than for the previous vintage. Continued low temperatures in spring, meant that flowering was delayed by 10 days. Significant rainfall had a challenging effect on flowering and berry set. Moderate temperatures throughout the early summer ensured a balanced growth. January and February were marked by dry and hot weather spell, with multiple heat spikes occurring over this period. However, even with those spikes, we did not see a significant acceleration in ripening. The yields were small but of high quality, and picking had to be timed carefully to ensure freshness in the resulting wines.
WINEMAKING
The grapes were lightly crushed and gently pressed. The juice was transferred to two stainless steel fermenters where it underwent spontaneous fermentation (wild ferment from indigenous yeasts). The two tanks ran at different temperatures. One at 13 degrees and the other at 16 degrees. The wine was not allowed to go through malolactic fermentation and was left on the lees until bottling took place.
GRAPE VARIETIES : 100% Chardonnay
PRODUCTION : 5,345 cases – 32,072 bottles
ANALYSIS : Alcohol: 12.5% Vo l. Total Acidity: 5.87 g/L pH: 3.17 Residual Sugar: 1.41 g/L
