Winemaker Notes
The 2021 vintage consists of five Grenache Noir vineyards, with the core a vineyard from the Paardeberg planted in the early 2000's.
A component of the wine was fermented and matured in concrete. Juice was kept on the skins for four weeks pre-/during fermentation and 60% whole bunches were used. One punch down per day was done resulting in minimal and gentle extraction. The wine was pressed off and matured in old 500 L neutral French oak barrels as well as a concrete vessel for a year.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A lovely nose of sliced strawberries, grated nutmeg, rose petal and baked raspberries. Medium-bodied with silky tannins. Fresh with lovely berry character. Sturdy and bright. Herbal and floral complexity with a long, textural finish.
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Vinous
The 2021 Grenache Noir comes from five vineyards with younger vines than the Chenin, mainly planted in the early 2000s that oblige two green harvests. Sixty percent is fermented and matured in concrete and using 60% whole bunch. The bouquet is very well defined and transparent; red cherries intermingle with raspberry and slate-like scents. The palate is well-balanced with fine tannins and superb acidity. Fine, bitter cherry notes towards the finish fan out wonderfull; this is a top-notch Grenache.
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Wine & Spirits
A once-daily punch down limited extraction in this wine and produced a beautifully light grenache, the herbal cherry flavors filling out its open, welcoming frame. It shows some earthy detail through the middle, but remains sweetly soft and invitingly easy.
Grenache thrives in any warm, Mediterranean climate where ample sunlight allows its clusters to achieve full phenolic ripeness. While Grenache's birthplace is Spain (there called Garnacha), today it is more recognized as the key player in the red blends of the Southern Rhône, namely Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Côtes du Rhône and its villages. Somm Secret—The Italian island of Sardinia produces bold, rustic, single varietal Grenache (there called Cannonau). California, Washington and Australia have achieved found success with Grenache, both flying solo and in blends.
Literally meaning "the black land," Swartland takes its name from the endangered, indigenous "renosterbos" (translating to rhino bush), which used to be plentiful enough to turn the entire landscape a dark color certain during times of year. The district, attracting some of the most adventurous and least interventionist winemakers, excels in robust and full-bodied reds as well as quality fortified wines.