2019 Naudé, Grenache
Western Cape,South Africa,
£40.49
Bottle size: 75cl,
In stock
“For many years Ian worked with Bordeaux style varietals, until Rosa Kruger found this amazing vineyard of Grenache from Agter-Paardeberg. However, after only one vintage (2014) with this block, he lost it until 2019.
Ian says “”I was excited to put my hands on this Grenache again and just like the 2014 – vintage, my main intention was to move away from those typical heavy/fruit/barnyard style Grenache.
Many visits to the vineyard and picking at the ripeness that would make a lighter Grenache
Description
CELLAR INFORMATION Picked in small crates and left overnight in cold room to bring temperature down to roughly 10 degrees Celsius. The challenge is to interpret the current vintage conditions in order to balance whole bunch, destemming of grapes and adding stalks (tannins). A combination of whole bunch, destemmed grapes and stalks go into a stainless steel tank and left until natural fermentation starts. VINEYARD INFORMATION Crops were one of the smallest ever due to the ongoing drought. Severe weather fluctuations during bud break and flowering, contributed to an already challenging season. The positive was, despite a small crop, an increase in quality of the fruit. (Winter of 2019 received high rainfall however vineyards and soils will still take some time to recover from the severe drought.)
Reviews
Greg Sherwood 95
From a spectacular block in Agter-Paardeberg, this Grenache has a mind and a life of its own. With minimal intervention throughout, this petulant child has been rapidly evolving with it s own ideas of where it s going. It seems to grow in complexity and interest all the time, and is now showing a floral nose, wild strawberry, fragrant spice and an earthy, meaty intensity. [Greg Sherwood, 01/01/2023]
JancisRobinson.com 17.5/20
[Jancis Robinson, 01/01/2023]
Platter’s 93
[Platter’s, 01/01/2023]
Producer Profile
Ian Naudé’s wines are unlike anything else.
His range of wines are made up of esoteric pockets of old and new vines that tell a story about South African heritage. He did so fearlessly, believing that South African wine, if made honestly, and without compromise can come to rival the finest wines in the world. And slowly the international wine cognoscenti have started believing it too, as demonstrated by their rave reviews year-on-year.
