2017 3x75cl

• 75cl bottle

The inspiration for unlocking the fruit perfumed beauty of Grenache comes from the Northern Hemisphere where our winemakers spent time working with this variety The grapes for Project Z Grenache 2017 were sourced from an old bush vine vineyard in the cool climate region of Darling on the Cape West Coast Growing untamed and unbridled in sandy soils and subjected to the maritime airflow off the Atlantic Ocean, the vineyard was selected for its ability to grow grapes offering a superior expression of the site’s unique geography. Fermentation in Italian clay amphorae with a further 12 months of maturation captures the essence of this inimitable vineyard in a red wine of singular personality exuding freshness, focus and texture.

Vineyards

Old bush-vine vineyard

Vintage

Much like the 2016 vintage, 2017 can also be characterized by the dry winter and a dry growing season. We had however planned for this and managed our vineyards carefully to ensure that they don’t experience any extreme water stress. We experienced fairly persistent wind during the latter flowering period and the yields, especially on our Cabernets, were lower than normal. The harvest started very early and we were up and running on the 11th of January. We expected 2017 to be a challenging vintage (similar to 2016), though very moderate midsummer temperatures and cooler than normal night temperatures provided excellent ripening conditions. The Sauvignon Blanc’s are far more expressive than we expected and the Chenin Blanc’s are particularly vibrant. With regard to the red varieties the long even ripening provided great colour and flavour development and overall physiological ripeness at lower than normal sugar levels. This in turn has meant that we were able to produce wines that we believe will have great balance and finesse without being short on density. While our Cabernet’s are always outstanding we believe that the 2017 Shiraz produced are displaying a new evolution for us at Kleine Zalze. Showcasing these wines in a year of two’s time should prove to be interesting and a lot of fun

Winemaking

Fermented in Italian clay amphorae with a further 12 months maturation.

Enjoy with:

• Grilled and Roasted Red Meats
• Pizza/Pasta
• Casseroles/Stews
• Mature Strong Cheeses

Seared duck with soy & ginger