Intense ripe pineapple and melon flavours supported by white peach, apricot and hints of jasmine and lemon zest. Orange peel, roasted cashew nuts, toffee and vanilla flavours in the wine reminds of a wet pine forest floor in autumn. The wine has a brilliant acidity and strong core due to the natural fermentation. The roundness on the pallet and flavours of orange blossom and lemony zest is supported by a creamy finish.
Food Pairing
This powerful wine can be matched with strongly flavoured food like duck a l’orange and rich sauces like a walnut and hollandaise sauce, provided that it is not too lemony. It pairs particularly well with crayfish or smoked haddock in a creamy sauce. It is equally good with salmon or crab risottos. Serve chilled but not too cold.
Serve ice cold at 8-12 C.
Lourensford Winemaker’s Selection Chardonnay 2014 (6/case) (R169/BOTTLE)
A cool and very wet winter allowed vines to go into proper dormancy. We experienced lots of rain, thunder storms and floods in August and November. Luckily this did not affect the sensitive flowering and ripening stages too much. The thunder storms and lots of rain resulted in good growth of the vines after budding. We had very little severe South Easter winds at the start of summer that resulted in very good budding and flowering of the vines and a record harvest. We experienced a fairly cool summer that resulted in slower ripening and the ability to harvest at lower sugar levels. With good canopy management and perfect harvest decisions we manage to bring the grapes in at just the desired time. This resulted in refined wines with elegance and good natural acidity.
The harvest date was 5th of March 2014.
In The Vineyard
Altitude: 200m above sea level, and close to the Lourens River.
Age of vines: 9 years
Rootstock: Richter 110
Clones: CY95
Slopes: Situated on a slight Western facing slope
Row direction: South-West to North-East
Soil type: Tukulu soilAnalysis
Alcohol: 14 vol %
pH: 3.48
Total acid: 6.1 g/l
RS: 4.6 g/l
Closure: Hand selected quality corkWine Information
Cultivar: 100% Chardonnay
Wood: 37% of the wine underwent spontanuous fermentation while the rest was inoculated. 66% was fermented in new Burgundian barrels and the balance in older barrels with intermittent barrel rolling to stir up the lees and release the manno-proteins in the yeast cells that adds flavour and structure to the final wine. The wine spent 10 months in barrel on it’s primary lees.Maturation Potential
This vintage can be enjoyed up to 2019 but will reach its best drinking potential towards the end of 2015 and will possibly peak only towards the end of 2017.
Food Pairing
This powerful wine can be matched with strongly flavoured food like duck a l’orange and rich sauces like a walnut and hollandaise sauce, provided that it is not too lemony. It pairs particularly well with crayfish or smoked haddock in a creamy sauce. It is equally good with salmon or crab risottos. Serve chilled but not too cold.
Accolades
Decanter – Commended (2015)
Chardonnay du Monde – Silver (2015)Serve ice cold at 8-12 C.