Cartology is a vinous exploration of Cape heritage. It’s intended to be a picture of the Cape seen through the lens of her old vineyards in a given vintage. The cuveé is composed of rare and extraordinary parcels of mature dryland bushvines, of heritage grapes, namely Chenin Blanc and Sémillon. These grapes have been planted in the Cape for centuries. Cartology has become our staple offering. It serves as a poster child for our project, and also seems to have become a flag bearer for Cape heritage wine in general.

The Name

Cartology means the study of maps or charts. It could not be a more perfect name for this wine. Not only because of our endeavours to search for and find these special old vineyards, but also because the wine itself can be seen as a vinous map or tapestry of the Cape.

Vineyards

As a rule, the Cartology parcels are dry farmed bushvines, with a minimum age of 35 years, although most are between 40 and 50 years old. Average yields for these parcels is around 3 tons/Ha or around 20hl/Ha. Cartology 2024 is 92% Chenin blanc and 8% Sémillon. The Chenin comes from our parcels in the Skurfberg, Piekenierskloof, Malmesbury, Paardeberg, Bottelary, False Bay and Tygerberg. The Semillon comes from the old La Colline block in Franschhoek.

Vintage Notes

Wonderful nose of pear and kumquat/lime citrus. Some stone fruit too. Fantastic palate, beautiful shape, very balanced, quite powerful, full of savoury sweet tension. Long finish, deep and resonant. One for the books.

Winemaking and Maturation

The grapes were hand sorted and whole bunch pressed. The juice was very lightly settled (we like very cloudy raw juice) with no additions to the raw juice, wild fermentation took place in cements eggs, old foudres, and old barrels (various sizes). Fermentation of various parcels lasted anywhere between 3 weeks and 11 months. The wine was kept on lees for around 12 months, then rested in tank on fine lees without fining for a further five months prior to bottling. Very simple, careful winemaking.

Technical Details

Alc: 13.37% RS: 2.3g/l TA: 5.81g/l pH: 3.34

Varieties: 92% Chenin Blanc, 8% Sémillon

Origin: Western Cape

Production: 22 510 bottles and 240 magnums

Bottling date: May 2025

Data Sheet:

https://alheitvineyards.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Cartology-2024-Factsheet-1.pdf