Cabernet Sauvignon

Pair with roasted pork shoulder, côte de boeuf and cheese.

Growing up on my family’s sheep farm near Sutherland in the arid Karoo I spent hours exploring the veld with my canine companion. We enjoyed the simple pleasures of farm life and Nature has always been in my blood. With my passion for the outdoors combined with an affinity for Maths and Science I had my sights set on studying medicine and enrolled for a Bachelor of Science degree at Stellenbosch University. It was here that the wine bug bit. After graduating from Stellenbosch University with a BSc and BSc Honours in Wine Biotechnology in 1998 I was appointed as Assistant Winemaker at Kleine Zalze in Stellenbosch in 1999. Completing harvest tenures in Sancerre St Emilion and Beziers France I gained an appreciation for the balance and elegance of the wines of these regions. Following my time at Kleine Zalze I accepted a winemaker position at Graham Beck Wines in 2005. After a brief stint under the mentorship of Charles Hopkins then-Cellar Master at Franschhoek I found myself the sole winemaker in a world class cellar and living my dream. Drawing on my extensive training and rewarding career as a winemaker and marketer with invaluable experience locally and abroad I took a leap of faith and started my own label in 2016.

Fruit from a 20-year-old and 9 year old vineyard planted on deep granitic soils in Firgrove, Stellenbosch. The Firgrove vineyards lies between Somerset West and Stellenbosch at the foot of the Helderberg about 6 km from the False Bay rim. The unique soils originated around 500-550 million years ago when South America (in fact the Falkland Islands, then still attached) and Western Australia came crashing into the Cape. This particular collision deposited and broke off large amounts of granite forming what we now call Firgrove – a ridge sweeping up from the False Bay rim. The result, 500 million years later, is granite gravel soils. Underlying these low, water holding, nutrient poor top soils is a layer of laterite which we commonly call “Coffeestone”. This Coffeestone is made from mineral elements of the decomposed granite; once more fusing together to make what is essentially a very coarse, porous layer in the soil with good water and nutrient qualities. Below this we have partially decomposed granite in the form of saprolite. This subsoil, into which the vines push their roots, is the “Tough Times Bank” where the vines can access water and nutrients in slow release through the latter part of the season. As the soil dries out, the clay cracks and allows the vines to plumb deeper to keep going. The close proximity to the cold Atlantic Ocean, with a view of False Bay from Hangklip to Simonstown, ensures slow ripening. Sustained winds control the vigour resulting in an overall terroir effect of small bunches, small berries with concentrated berry flavours and full structured but ripe tannins.

Matured in 1st (85 %) and second fill (15 %) 300 li French oak barrels for 25 months.

Hand harvested. Fermented in open top barrels with 3 – 4 punch downs per day.