Tasting Notes
Our 8th vintage gave us wines of greater balance, the dry and hot vintage meant smaller berries that in turn led to more concentrated aromas and flavours. The vintage is marked by aromas of darker fruit such as, black currents and plums yet also red fruit such as strawberries and redcurrents with hints of dried herbs tickling the nose. The palate is complex, rich and balanced showing flavours of blackcurrents, mulberries, prunes, olives, hints of forest floor and a lovely earthy undertone. The tannins are round and soft yet firm giving the palate great length and structure. It will definitely benefit from aging in bottle or if to enjoy now, it will surely need decanting. To enjoy it fully we suggest a serving temperature of16-18 ̊C. It can be enjoyed with a variety of foods; such as game meats, duck, mushroom dishes and charcuterie, olives and beetroot crisps
Technical Analysis
Alcohol: 13.39% Residual Sugar: 2.0 g/l Total Acidity: 6.1 g/l pH: 3.5 Ageing potential: 7-8 years Harvested: By hand 26th-28th Jan 2016 Bottled: 1st Feb 2017 Production: 15,600 bottles (750ml)
Harvest Report
All together a tough vintage, when early ripening varieties and mid-season varieties ripened at the same time. Harvest began on the 26th January and finished by 4th March. With the threat of drought and hot days a reality yields across South African were down and are likely to continue to decline. Luckily Seven Springs has springs in the mountains which feed the vineyard, but not much could be done for those incredibly hot days during the 2016 ripening season. Our Pinot Noir was picked over a few days and all was in before the end of January. We picked by hand and do most of the bunch sorting in the vineyards to ensure minimal diseased bunches travel to the cellar. At the cellar we sort again, de-stem and crush, followed by cold-soak. Soaking at temperatures below 10°C for a few days before either natural yeasts are allowed to start the alcoholic fermentation or we inoculate with the desired commercial yeast. Post alcoholic fermentation the wines are left to rest on the skins for a few more weeks in aid of extracting more tannins that help with the colour stability of the wine. Malo-lactic fermentation was completed in older French oak barrels, after which the wine spent 9 months in barrel maturing. We use old barrel because they subtly support the fruit vibrancy.