Durbanville Hills Bastion 2004

Veritas 2007 - Bronze
2007 International Wine Challenge â€“ Bronze Medal
Veritas 2006 - Bronze
Colour: Ruby garnet
Bouquet: Aromas of white pepper, violets and plum from the Shiraz uplifts the shy typical cool climate flavours of the Cabernet Sauvignon.
Taste: Mediumâ€“bodied, soft-textured, mouth-filling with spicy and smoky oak flavours that linger on the aftertaste.

The winemaker recommends serving this with robust dishes such as game poultry, smoked dishes such as cassler and sausage, venison and red meats.

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variety : Cabernet Sauvignon [ 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Shiraz ]

winery : Durbanville Hills Wine

winemaker : Louw Engelbrecht

wine of origin : Coastal

analysis : alc : 13.23 % vol rs : 1.9 g/l pH : 3.4 ta : 6.6 g/l

type : Red wooded

pack : Bottle

AWARDS

Veritas 2007 - Bronze
2007 International Wine Challenge â€“ Bronze Medal
Veritas 2006 - Bronze

in the vineyard : The unique character of this wine is to be found in the influence of the different vineyards from which the grapes were sourced. These were selected from various north-east facing, low-yield vineyards, mostly located around 250 m above sea level and grown in deep red soils with good water retention properties.

The Cabernet Sauvignon was sourced from the centre valleyâ€™s medium high slopes whilst the Shiraz block is on a slightly higher location where the wind helps to control the vigorous growth so typical of this variety.

Bastion
The oldest surviving building in South Africa is the Castle in Cape Town, built over a 13 year period between 1666 and 1679 to replace the small clay fort built by the first commander, Jan van Riebeeck (who was also the countryâ€™s first winemaker). The pentagonal fortification boasts five bastions from where crossfire could protect the maritime replenishment station and its inhabitants. These bastions inspired the architects designing the Durbanville Hills Winery to equip the building with its own stone-built bastion that acts as a viewing point for an uninterrupted panorama of Table Bay against the backdrop of Table Mountain.

about the harvest: The Shiraz grapes were picked in late February before shrivelling set in, when the tannins and fruit had reached optimum ripeness. The Cabernet Sauvignon was picked three weeks later at full ripeness. Picking was done by hand to ensure a selection of only the best in the vineyard.

in the cellar : After cold maceration, the grapes were fermented and given extended maceration. Maximum fruit colour and tannin extraction from the skins was made possible through continuous pump-over cycles. The fermenting juice was kept in oxygen-poor tanks, which remained closed, whilst the skins remained fully immersed during the entire fermentation and maceration period. After malolactic fermentation, the Cabernet Sauvignon was matured for 16 months and the Shiraz for 12 months in small wood, using a combination of new and second and third-fill French and American oak. The final blend selected from various combinations consists of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Shiraz.

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