The regional announcement precedes the final results in the
national event, whose results will be announced later in this week at a gala
function hosted in Upington this year.
“The tremendous achievement by Darling Cellars is testament
to the effort of many individuals who contributed to the success of this wine,”
says Darling Cellars chief winemaker Pieter-Niel Rossouw. “The annual Young
Wine Show is a platform where all producers show their young wines and
demonstrate what they are capable of. Again this year, a big cellar has shown
that is able to produce small batch, specialist wine of sublime quality as
well.”
Darling Cellars’ winning wine is a wine blend of Sauvignon Blanc
and Semillon varieties. The vineyards that produced them are dry-land farmed bushvines
located on a steep incline with a southerly aspect. The vine ages vary between
four and 10 years; the soils are well drained and comprise mostly of weathered
granite.
“The 2015 harvest that produced these grapes was very
moderate,” says Rossouw. “In general, the grapes were ready when we wanted to
harvest. We had no issues with disease and the fruit was healthy.
“Flavour in the white grapes carried through to the wine,
which is very important; in unskilled hands great flavour can be lost along the
way if one doesn’t take proper care. As for the red wines, they had good colour
and flavour from the start, too. Tannin structure was good and they’ve provided
great length in the wines,” Rossouw says.
For this blend, the two cultivars were harvested separately,
given skin contact overnight and racked the next day. Once the clear juice
settled, fermentation began. A part of the wine spent the first half of
fermentation in stainless steel tanks and the second half in 500-litre vats of
French oak. After fermentation the wine was stirred up. The balance of the wine
was kept in stainless steel tanks. Both components were used for blending.
As borne out by the opinion of the judges at the Young Wine
Show, the final result is a wine of supreme quality. The wine shows aromas and
flavours of asparagus and gooseberry; wood is very perceptible on the nose.
These characters follow through onto the palate with great balance between the
wood tannin and wine structure.
“It has great length and will do well up to two years of
ageing,” Rossouw says.
While not available on the market yet, the wine will be part
of the DC ultra premium range.
The latest achievement adds to a growing collection of
awards given to wines from Darling Cellars, which has the benefit of a unique
terroir. Established as private cellar in
1996, its focus is to produce wines that are true to the region and the varieties
themselves.
Its vineyards thrive in the cool and temperate West Coast
climate, which lends itself to a variety of different micro and meso-climates.
These combine with the varied soil types to produce grapes of exceptional
quality that result in unique wines. Some 95% of all its vineyards are farmed
without irrigation (dry land) and grown as bush vines - as close to natural
conditions as can be.
Their outstanding character is an expression of their
birthplace and is instantly recognisable in every bottle.
Darling Cellars produces a number of wine ranges – available
countrywide - including the DC Premium, DC Reserve, DC Classic, Sweet Darling
as well as limited releases.
Darling Cellars is situated on the R315 at Mamre Weg
Station. For more information, phone 022 492 2276, send email to info@darlingcellars.co.za or
visit www.darlingcellars.co.za. Follow Darling Cellars on Twitter
@DarlingCellars, and Facebook.
• The Swartland Young Wine Show Champion Dry White trophy is
sponsored by Malmesbury Toyota; and the Grand Champion by ABSA.