The wine displays a brilliant pale straw colour. Aromas of fresh pineapple and apricot spring from the glass. Lightly toasted brioche characters, testament to the barrel ageing on the lees, compliment the nose. The entry on the palate is vibrant with fresh sweet lime, grapefruit and subtle ginger spice notes. The palate has a smooth texture with a refreshing finish.
Viticulture
The grapes for this wine originate from Tokara’s properties in two different regions; namely Stellenbosch and Elgin, as well as from bought in fruit from two Stellenbosch vineyards. The vineyards crop at around 6 t/ha. The grapes were picked at optimal ripeness with sugars between 20 and 23 degrees brix and acidities ranging from 6 to 8 g/l.
Vinification
The grapes were de-stemmed, crushed and pressed to stainless steel tanks for overnight settling, after which the juice was racked and run to barrel with some lees added back. 100% of the wine fermented in 228L French oak barrels 7% being new barrels. The wine spent an average of 8 months in barrel ageing on the gross lees with regular lees stirring. 30% of the wine completed malolactic fermentation during barrel ageing. The wine was bottled in October 2019 after stabilisation and filtration. 96300 bottles were produced.
Recommendation
A perfect pairing with fish and chicken dishes or served as an aperitif.