Wine Style:

Red - A beautiful new world style with earthy and fruity notes. The wine s balanced, smokey with a long finish.

Tasting Notes:

Luscious notes of red berries balanced out by the traditional hints of pencil shavings. The palate shows great focus with very well refined tannins and great length. This Cabernet Sauvignon is a perfect companion for a variety of dishes but will pair seamlessly with duck breast with a bit of crispy skin on the side.

Sommelier's advice:

This Cabernet Sauvignon is a perfect companion for a variety of dishes but will pair seamlessly with duck breast with a bit of crispy skin on the side.

Vineyards:

The block used for our Circumstance Cabernet Sauvignon is on the north-west facing slopes of the Schapenberg, at an altitude of about 270 and 300m above sea level and a mere 4 kilometres from the Atlantic Ocean. Strong south-easterly winds help control growth and crop yield. Soils are of decomposed granite origin with fine sand/loam topsoil and medium-sized stones, helping with both drainage and moisture retention. Production was approximately 4 tons/ha.

Maturation:

20 month and French barrels

Winemaking process:

Grapes were destemmed, hand-sorted and placed into our open-top wooden fermenters via gravity. The natural fermentation started spontaneously, utilizing the wild yeasts present on the fruit. Punch downs (twice a day) were used during fermentation to ensure a soft and slow colour and tannin extraction. The wines spent 30 days on the skins to help integrate the tannins and stabilize the colour. The skins were separated from the juice via gravity flow and gently pressed in a basket press. The wine went through malolactic fermentation in barrel and was then aged in new (20%), second and third fill (80%) French barrels for 20 months. We never fine any of our reds so that the grapes are honestly and purely expressed in the wine. Only sulphur was added and no other additions, such as tartaric acid or enzymes, were allowed.

Interesting notes:

A cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon is the most famous red wine grape in the world and is celebrated as the king of the reds because of its great structure. With its small, thick-skinned berries, it is rich in colour and tannins.