Kleine Zalze Cellar Selection Merlot 2007

A medium-bodied, soft juicy wine, with ripe plum and fruitcake aromas on the nose that carry through to the palate. These fruit flavours are complimented by a crisp, well integrated acidity and a smoky, cigar box finish, affording this wine comfortable five year maturation potential.

This Merlot with its ripe plum, soft fruity tannins can be enjoyed with curries, stews and roasted meat dishes. It is a recommended partner for smoked gammon, chicken liver or duck.

variety : Merlot [ Merlot ]
winemaker : Johan Joubert
wine of origin : Stellenbosch
analysis : alc : 14.0 % vol  rs : 4.3 g/l  pH : 3.52  ta : 6.2 g/l  
type : Red   wooded
pack : Bottle  closure : Cork  

ageing : This wine will comfortably mature for another 5 years.

in the vineyard : These grapes were cultivated and harvested from different blocks on Kleine Zalze. Southerly sea breezes in the afternoon help to cool the Merlot grapes to ensure optimum ripening conditions. The vineyards were carefully pruned and suckered to ensure that optimum ripened grapes were harvested for the production of the 2007 Merlot Cellar Selection wine. For optimum ripeness and the colouring of the pips at lower sugar level, the efficient amount of leaves were left and the production was lower through green bunch dropping.

about the harvest: The grapes were picked early in the morning.

in the cellar : The grapes were destalked and cold soaked at 12°C for three days. The juice was fermented dry on the skins before pressing. Only 5% of the press juice was blended back into the final blend. Malolactic fermentation followed and complete in third and fourth fill French oak barrels. The wine matured for 12 months whereafter it was blend and bottled.

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