Wine Composition
100% Chenin Blanc
Winemakers Comments
Bright, medium yellow colour. (A little darker than usual due to the skin contact component) Beeswax and ripe lemon nose with hints of spice and dried apricot. Rich, expressive palate with a full creamy texture and complex flavours that linger on for some time. Should age with great interest many years. 2017 to 2026. Enjoy with poultry and lightly spicy seafood and vegetable dishes.
Awards
Tim Atkins | 94 points
4* - Platter's Wine Guide 2013
Technical Analysis
Alcohol Percentage
14.21%
Total Acidity
4.2g/l
pH
3.71
Residual Sugar
1.8 g/l
Vineyards/Vintage
A hot, dry vintage and our earliest ever. A smaller than average crop producing rich, concentrated fruit a little lacking in acidity. Accordingly we fermented a small portion of the Chenin Blanc on the skins and included 4% to add a little tannin to make up for the low acidity. (We never add acid, a common practice in all warmer climate regions in the world).
Cellar Techniques
Grapes handpicked in the cool early mornings and lightly crushed and allowed 3 hours skin contact before gently pressing in a traditional basket press. Sulphur added and natural settling allowed for 2 days before 100 % barrel fermentation with natural yeasts. All the wine was kept in 225L, 400L, and 700L barrels for 10 months with lees stirred 1 – 2 times a month initially. 12% new French oak used. No malolactic fermentation. Lightly fined with bentonite – a natural clay. Bottled unfiltered on the property by hand.
Winemaker
Name - David Trafford
Winery
De Trafford Winery is situated on the beautiful Mont Fleur farm set at the top of a dramatic valley above Stellenbosch, 380m up between the Stellenbosch and Helderberg mountains, right at the end of the Blaauwklip road, between Stellenbosch and Somerset West.
The history of wine growing on this mountain farm started with the purchase of the property in 1976 by the Trafford family as inaccessible grazing land. Many of the high altitude slopes were deemed suitable for high quality red grape varieties. Unfortunately, due to the absurd quota restrictions, planting a commercial vineyard had to wait 18 years. In 1983 a small vineyard was established to produce experimental wines – consumed by family and friends! These were our learning curve years ( 1984 – 1991 ), which included lots of help and advice from local winemakers and working experience in France, particularly in the Bordeaux area.
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