Description
The Grape Cavalier is a brilliant blend of 60% 40-year-old Colombard and 40% 60-year-old Palomino from a coastal vineyard near the Atlantic. It’s a lean, mineral-driven wine with vibrant citrus notes of lime, lemon zest, and preserved lemon, layered with starfruit, yellow plum, baked pear, and a touch of fennel. The palate is bone-dry, mouth-watering, and marked by huge salinity and a slight bitterness, balanced by a rich texture. Aged 8 months on lees in 500L oak barrels with no malolactic fermentation, this unfined and unfiltered wine has a refreshing finish and is built to age.
Reviews
JancisRobinson.com 17.5
Full bottle 1,364 g. 60% Colombard from a vineyard planted in 1985 and 40% Palomino from a vineyard planted in 1962 – both vineyards 25 km from the Atlantic Ocean, both on sandy silt. Grapes were picked early in the morning, then cooled for 24 hours. Destemmed, pressed in an old basket press where they were also foot pressed. Spontaneous fermentation in an old 500-litre barrel. Fermentation lasted for about three weeks with a cooling jacket fixed to the barrel to keep the temperature at a steady 18 C. Aged for eight months on gross lees before bottling unfined and unfiltered. No malo. Low added sulphites only before bottling. I almost forgot to taste this wine because I got so lost in the nose – remarkably complex. Acacia flowers, fennel pollen, rain on white dust and white dust on grapefruit flowers. It smells almost hazy with fragrance, and yet, one sip and the wine almost shatters with crystalline purity, clarity and angularity. The fruit on this is startlingly bright! Piercing acidity that is, at the same time, sweet with citrine intensity and ripeness. And energy that feels as if the wine comes with its own electric force field. Long, insistent finish of grapefruit and slate. So long! [Tamlyn Currin, 13/08/2024]
Greg Sherwood 96
This delicious Weskus Wit Versnit (West Coast white blend) is another triumph of terroir from Sakkie Mouton, opening with picante granitic aromatics that are heavily laden with oyster shell, sea breeze salinity and brine over delicate nuances of tangy white citrus, grated lime peel, lemon herbal tea, wet chalk, stem ginger spice and gentle hazelnut undertones. The palate is equally intense and beguiling, delivering a tart, mouthwatering experience tightly interwoven with fresh laser-like acids, another burst of salted lemons after a savoury tequila shot , freshly cut Granny Smith apples and an invigorating mineral tension that reverberates on the long maritime finish. A really fabulous new creation that has Sakkie Mouton s signature Weskus winemaking genius written all over it. This appears to be a once-off experimental cuvee from Sakkie as he continues to push the boundaries of experimental winemaking. Decant and drink on release or cellar this beauty for another 5 to 8+ years. [Greg Sherwood, 30/04/2024]
Decanter 94
Sea-breeze, white blossom and lemongrass scents evolve onto a richer body of stone fruit and lemon cream with an undercurrent of that distinct West Coast saltiness. Made exclusively for the UK, only 70 cases are available. From Atlantic-facing vineyards planted in 1962 (Palomino) and 1985 (Colombar) on silty-sandy soils. Foot-stomped, natural ferment, and lees-ageing before being bottled unfined and unfiltered. [Malu Lambert, 01/04/2024]
Anticipated maturity: 2024-2030
Producer Profile
Sakkie Mouton has been at the forefront of experimental winemaking in the Vredendal and Koekenaap region for the past 6+ years producing some of the most enticing premium white and red wine offerings that are clearly inspired and influenced by the rugged West Coast vine growing lifestyle.
