The wine has an alluring bright gold colour with a beautiful, inviting nose filled with ripe tropical fruits along with peach, pear, kumquat and a hint of nettles and greengage – all on a backdrop of Botrytis. There is an intense concentration in the mouth with great balance of all components held together by keen acidity while fynbos honey, toasted nuts and caramel lingers in the background. Super now yet has many years of development to do.
Food Pairing
The intensity and richness of botrytized Semillon matches all eggy or cream based soft vanilla desserts, such as creme brulee. It also goes well with lemon or lime based puddings as well as good old fashioned bread and butter pudding. Baked cheesecake served with kumquat preserve is an especially good match.
Don’t waste our prized Noble Late Harvest on intense chocolatey desserts.
Serve ice cold at 8-12 C.
Lourensford Limited Release Noble Late Harvest 2014 (6/case) (R144/BOTTLE)
A cool winter allowed vines to go into proper dormancy. We were expecting a very different scenario with the cool start to spring and early summer which we thought would delay the start of the harvest. Then suddenly, the heat rose in early January and again in early February. However, for the most part, February and March were relatively mild, making for long, slow and very beneficial ripening. What also enhanced quality was the drop in night time temperatures that in some instances was 1.5°C to 2°C lower compared with the average for February. This helped fruit to retain aromas and flavours.
The harvest date was 7th May 2014.
In The Vineyard
Altitude: 160m above sea level, and next to the Lourens river
Age of vines: 13 years
Rootstock: 101-14 Mgt
Clones: GD121
Slopes: Situated on the valley floor
Row direction: South-North
Soil type: Sweetwater soil profileAnalysis
Alcohol: 10.5 vol %
pH: 3.44
Total acid: 7.6 g/l
RS: 131.4 g/l
Closure: Hand selected quality corkWine Information
Cultivar: 100% Semillon
Wood: A touch of woodMaturation Potential
Noble Late Harvest wines have the highest extract of most wines; they are certainly the most complex and they also have the longest shelf-life of the whole range of sweet wines. This vintage is super now but can mature up to 2020 and longer if cellared correctly. It will reach its best drinking potential possibly only towards the end of 2018 only.
Food Pairing
The intensity and richness of botrytized Semillon matches all eggy or cream based soft vanilla desserts, such as creme brulee. It also goes well with lemon or lime based puddings as well as good old fashioned bread and butter pudding. Baked cheesecake served with kumquat preserve is an especially good match.
Don’t waste our prized Noble Late Harvest on intense chocolatey desserts.
Serve ice cold at 8-12 C.