| WINE | Radford Dale | ||||||||
| VARIETAL | Viognier | ||||||||
| VINTAGE | 2007 | ||||||||
| APPELLATION | Stellenbosch – South Africa | ||||||||
| ANALYSIS |
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| PRODUCTION | 190 (12 x 750ml.) cases |
VINEYARDS & HARVEST
This is a single-vineyard Viognier from the property where we are located on the Helderberg Mountain in Stellenbosch, overlooking the Ocean in a South / South-Westerly direction. The vineyard was planted in 1999 and is without a doubt one of the finest blocks on this property. The sub-soils are of decomposed granite, with a stony surface and an ideal orientation. Yields are typically 35 hl / ha, although in 2007 they were lower due to a heat-wave -which hit us between the picking of the lower and upper parcels.
VINIFICATION
The grapes were all hand-picked from dawn into small lug-bins, passed over our sorting table and then destemmed. Fermentation commenced on the skins, before the free-run juice was run-off, into barrel. Using a Rhone-derived yeast, we ensured that the wine fermented dry, in order to avoid the stuck-ferment or rich, flabby Viognier styles one often encounters in SA. The (gentle) pressings were kept separate, of which one barrel was destined to reach the final blend, helping the minerality of the site to develop a keen presence in the final wine. Malolactic fermentation was inhibited and the wine was lees-stirred monthly during its 6-month barrel maturation, before final blending.
BARRELS
All 8 barrels-worth of this wine barrel fermented and matured. Of that, 100% Burgundian-coopered French oak : Allier & Vosges 228 L barrels. 50% 2nd fill , 12% new. The balance 3rd & 4th fill.
WINEMAKER'S COMMENTS
Distinctly Viognier on the nose, with striking apricot and peaches, the palate is at the same time rich in flavour while very mineral in nature. Flinty, leesy characteristics mingle seamlessly with the overt dried-fruit aromas, producing a wine with surprising length, fruit weight, complexity and aromatic diversity. Drier, more mineral and nuanced than usual from the Cape, with definite hints of old-world-style Viognier. A wine for Condrieu fans rather than flabby new-world Viognier !