Skebenga

Beef, Game (deer, venison), Poultry

Jasper Raats is the shareholder, cellar master and managing director of Longridge Wine Estate, as well as partner in Vigneron Consulting, an international consulting business. The consultancy shares valuable knowledge to a select group of clients, particularly focusing on organic and biodynamic viticulture and oenology. In fact, it was through this consulting business that his relationship with Longridge first started. Jasper has established himself as one of the most talented winemakers in South Africa and first gained prominence for wines he created in New Zealand. In 2003, he started working as viticulturist and winemaker at New Zealand’s Clos Henri in the Marlborough region, developing a new vineyard and making wine for French Company, Henri Bourgeois. During this period, he also started Koru Wines, which became one of New Zealand’s top and most expensive wines. His international experience includes working in Burgundy, Pouilly Fume, Sancerre and in Napa and Sonoma under Pierre Seillan, the genial French creator of Vérité Wines.

Rooted in deep decomposed granite over clay soils on the slopes of the Helderberg a mountain south of Stellenbosch, the vineyards enjoy the refreshingly cool breezes from False Bay (Atlantic Ocean) during the hot summer days, and cool mountain winds during the evening, resulting in a unique freshness in the wine. The vineyards have been specially selected and are meticulously cared for by hand and the crop is reduced to ensure maximum quality. All the vineyards are also hand harvested on the different days that Jasper decides it has optimum ripeness.

The art of elevage was practised for 16 months, where after it was meticulously blended to an harmonious unity.

Grapes were sorted by hand, before being fermented in small bins. The different batches, separately undergoes naturel fermentation (no commercial yeast added) and the skins are punshed down in the must by hand (peagage) , where after it is pressed to barrel , where it undergoes natural malo-lactic fermentation in specially selected combination of matured French oak barrels.