Description
The 2021 Paserene Chardonnay from Elgin is a vibrant green-to-gold wine with bright citrus notes of lemon sponge, honeysuckle, and oatmeal, followed by chalk and saline ocean spray. With exuberant acidity, this wine has great aging potential and a broad, flavorful palate of lime, tropical notes, and lightly grilled nuts. Its great texture and balance reflect the pedigree of Elgin terroir, offering a gentle femininity.
Food pairing:
Pork, rich fish (like tuna or salmon), vegetarian dishes, poultry.
Producer Profile
Martin Smith is the winemaker and part-owner of Pasarene Wines, with its tasting room in Franschhoek and vineyards there, Tulbagh and Elgin. A collaboration between Martin and businessman Ndavhe Mareda it was first created in 2013 based on Martin’s vision to make his two favourite wines, a Chardonnay and Cab-like wine. (Which explains the selection today.)
Born in Worcester, also home to legendary South African winemakers like Abrie Beeslaar (previously of Kanonkop, now Beeslaar wines), Martin is a third-generation winemaker, his grandfather made wine in Paarl, and seemingly the juice was in his veins from an early age. Having done a stint at a cork factory in Portugal and completed his studies at Elsenburg, Martin became a flying winemaker for over ten years, making wine all over America, and finally at the LVMH-owned Newton Winery in Saint Helena, where he was there winemaker for 5 years. Having never intended to be away from South Africa for so long, he soon found a job at Vilafonté, where he worked with Dr. Phil Freese and Zelma Long for six years before starting Paserene officially in 2013 to make his own Bordeaux-style wines and Chardonnay.
The name Pasarene is derived from the Latin Passeriformes, in reference to the largest order of “travelling and free” birds, among them the swift and swallow, both birds that have come to represent Martin’s travels and his return home. Each label contains a story of the wine, place and man, and put together by leading South African artists, miniaturist Lorraine Loots, Carmen Ziervogel, and Lauren Ann McCarthy. The wines are a tribute to our portfolio and we invite you to get to know them now.
Tasting Notes
Decanter 95
A partnership formed in 2013 between winemaker Martin Smith and friend and investor Ndavhe Mareda, this Franschhoek-based wienry sources fruit from Elgin for this its top Chardonnay. Just 3500 bottles were made in the cool, high-quality 2021 vintage from a vineyard with clay and koffieklip/ferricrete soils. The wine fermented naturally over six months, then aged fro another 16 months in oak, of which one-third was new, one-third second use and one-third third use. JM: A rich, toasty, savoury nose with popcorn and oak but also bright apple and pear fruit lurking underneath. Currently somewhat dominated by the wood. Bold and mouthcoating with a long finish. AH: Loads to enjoy. Rich, ripe and weighty, but with the acidity and mineral notes to keep everything in check. Lovely purity of flavour. This has an almost Meursault-like butteriness and heft, and a long, lingering aftertaste. RJ: Bittersweet, herbaceous, elegant, refined and pure. White stone fruit and flint. Textured, with nice minerality and some gentle spice. Hints of pineapple and white nuts. This is evolving well. Delivers now but will age. Alc. 13.1% [Decanter, 01/05/2025]
Anticipated maturity: 2025-2032
