Peacock Wild Ferment Chardonnay 2016

ageing : 

0-5 Years

The Cape did not experience a very cold winter in 2015, with near perfect days lingering at 20 degrees Celsius. The evenings were cold but not excessively so. We also experienced the driest winter to date with half the normal rainfall. We saw budburst occurring at the beginning of September, which was definitely a bit earlier than usual. It was a proper spring with lots of sunshine and warm temperatures. The ripening season showed moderate to warm temperatures. Our first grapes were picked a week earlier than last year (which was already early). A lot of the Stellenbosch/Helderberg producers were significantly down on yield. With the berries being remarkably small this year the flavours were fantastic.

We follow a ‘less is more’, minimal intervention winemaking philosophy for all our wines. The grapes are tasted at regular intervals to determine the optimal ripeness level. Harvesting takes place by hand, after which the grapes are whole bunch pressed. Clarification happens naturally over a 24 hour period without the addition of any enzymes. The juice is then fermented naturally with ‘wild yeasts’ – in tanks and our concrete eggs – with the natural yeasts from the grapes allowing for the flavours in the vineyard to be expressed in the bottle. No additions of tartaric acid are necessary, due to the natural balance found in the grapes. Fermentation took one month to complete and the wine was then left on the primary lees for a further three months before bottling.