ULTRA – an old bush vine, single vineyard Chenin blanc – a vintage of celebration – an outlet… something to make one’s heart beat faster.

The Story

I met this farmer 6 years ago. He farms in the Swartland, on the border of Darling. He comes across as an extremely traditional kind of farmer. He is a young guy, but lives out in the middle of nowhere. I’ve only ever seen him wearing blue overalls and kaki two-tone shirts. A year ago I was sitting in his kitchen having a cup of tea. He mentioned to me that he is really excited for the upcoming weekend. When I asked why he replied: “do you know the Ultrrrra?” (pronounced with the very typical Swartland rolling r-sound). I didn’t know what he was talking about so he started explaining… and to cut a long story short, he is a closet raver. None of his neighbouring farmers know this about him, but his way of blowing off steam and getting rid of some stress is to go to Cape Town, book himself and his wife into a hotel and dance the night away! Have you ever… In our modern day lives, stress is a reality and so many friends of mine struggle to get an outlet. And here we have a farmer, a traditional guy in the middle of nowhere with a passion/an outlet – his way of coping with life. I think it’s brilliant. And I felt that this is a story that needs to be told – So here you have it: ULTRA – an old bush vine, single vineyard Chenin blanc – the first vintage of a celebration – an outlet… something to make one’s heart beat faster. So I did the rave like scene sketch, grafiti-ed a DJ and got the farmer to dance – so you’ll find him in the crowd on the front label.

Technical Information

Cultivar: Chenin Blanc (100%)

Vintage: 2023

Region: Swartland

Amount of Bottles Produced: 1058

Vineyard: Single old-vine, unirrigated bushvines in the Swartland flatlands. Sandy topsoil with “Koffieklip” subsoil 100 meter above sea-level.

Winemaking

The grapes were picked at optimal ripeness and cooled overnight to 4 degrees celsius. The next morning the grapes were pressed as whole bunches. The juice underwent spontaneous fermentation in amphora and older French oak barrels. Deep winter the wine received one sulfur addition. 10 months on the leese, blended and bottled.

Alcoholic Strenght: 12.5 % / vol

Acidity: 4.79 g/l

PH: 3.52

Reducing Sugar: 1.58 g/l

Free SO2: 29ppm

Total SO2: 78ppm

Volatile Acidity: 0.47 g/l

Closure: DIAM

Vegan: Yes

Voice recording: https://blankbottle.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Ultra-23.m4a