OTW: Neil Ellis Grenache 2011

Friday, 12 June, 2015
Mike Bampfield-Duggan, lifestyle.iafrica.com
Back in the 80s, Neil Ellis became the Capes’ first winemaker to make and market wine under his own name. Pioneering a Burgundian approach in the Cape, he focused on producing the best wine possible, in rented cellar space, selecting top-quality growers to produce his grapes.

Mindful that no single vineyard can satisfy the needs of all grape varieties, Neil Ellis set out to identify distinct sites where individual varieties excel which included Stellenbosch (Jonkershoek), Elgin, Darling (Groenekloof region) and Piekenierskloof in the Cederberg. He developed long-term partnerships with quality-minded growers within exceptional vineyards in these areas. Neil explains "it takes 10 years for a winemaker to get to know a vineyard and only then can he really formulate a winemaking philosophy. It takes another 10 years to fine tune that".

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