Zorgvliet Richelle 2017

Considering its superb structure, this must be a very serious contender for one of the best value Cabernet Sauvignon’s from anywhere in the world. Great fruit quality is a given yet it is the fine, complex and minerally complexity that this wine has in spades which marks it out as something rather special.

Give this a couple of hours in the decanter.

Will keep till at least 2028+

47% Cabernet Sauvignon
29% Cabernet Franc
12% Merlot
12% Petit Verdot

Owners Stephan and Izelle van de Merwe have proudly named their two Grand Cuvee wines
after their daughters, Richelle and Simoné. This wine represents Zorgvliet’s philosophy of ‘Elegance in wine’, a classic Cabernet Sauvignon based Bordeaux blend.

Producer notes – production: The vineyards are located in the Banghoek Valley, Stellenbosch. Elevation is 300-500masl and the vines are mostly southerly facing. This provides moderate temperatures resulting in late but slow ripening fruit. The soils are made up of leached, decomposed granite and sandstone. Gravel in the upper layers provides for good drainage in wet seasons and clay in the subsoil provides moisture retention in dry ones. The steep vineyards are trained on a 7 wire hedge and cane pruned by hand. Average yield is 5-8tonnes/ha. All grapes are harvested by hand and berry sorted into stainless steel fermenters. Natural fermentation commences spontaneously and is finished with a pure strain. Extraction is done with a combination of punch-down, rack-and-return and pump-over methods. Batches are gently pressed and immediately racked to small French oak barrels where they complete malolactic fermentation. The components are then racked three times to enhance clarification and development. Blending takes place after 14 months ageing, after which the composed blend is aged in barrel for another 4 months. The wine is bottled after a total of 22 months.