LONGRIDGE SHIRAZ 2007

Stellenbosch

Annual Rainfall: 570mm
Proximity to ocean: 16km

Clovelly and shales

The vines were pruned to yield 10 tons/ha and through suckering and crop thinning at version we eventually arrived at 7 tons/ha of 180g open bunches (which lead us to saignee 20% of the juice). Grapes were harvested from the trellised-north facing slopes in the week of February and 1st week of March 2007.

Clinton Le Sueur

Sorted, destemmed and crushed grapes were allowed to begin spontaneous fermentation and a Phone yeast took the juice through to the wine at 24°C over 6 days on the skins before a light pressing. The wine spent 17 months in predominantly Burgundian barrels, with one racking at nine months before barrel selection and bottling.

Alc: 13.77%
TA: 5.6 g/l
RS: 2.6 g/l
pH: 3.58

A dark inky heart, a nose of succulent cinnamon bun and flavors of aniseed, cherry, tobacco, sticky toffee, blackcurrant and raspberry dance in and out of the wings on a stage. An affair in a glass.

Drink form mid 2009 until 2013.

Baked fennel with vermouth and black pepper, spiced (cumin, coriander, fenugreek and cardamom) bean and vegetable casserole, sirloin steak with red and morel mushrooms, ostrich kebabs.