WINEMAKER: Francois van Zyl

COMPOSITION: 100% Chenin Blanc

ORIGIN: Simonsberg, Stellenbosch

AGE OF VINES: 5 – 10 years on average

IRRIGATION: Dry land vineyards & supplemental

SOIL TYPE: Oakleaf and Tukulu

YIELD: 5 – 8 tons per hectare

AGEING POTENTIAL: 10 years from vintage

PRODUCTION VOLUME: 4166 cases (6 x 750ml)

FOOD PAIRING

Shellfish |chicken pasta

VINTAGE CONDITIONS

2022 is regarded as one of the best white wine vintages in recent years. The flowering conditions were perfect and there was very little disease pressure. Warm days and cool nights caused slow ripening and resulted in healthy bunches. The absence of botrytis and sunburn during harvest contributed to the quality of the vintage.

WINEMAKING / MATURATION

We hand-pick the 4 different blocks over a period of 2 weeks at varying ripeness levels, to maintain natural acidity and add more fruit dimension and complexity. The earlier pickings will go into small open-top fermentation vessels for 2 to 3 weeks of carbonic maceration with no destemming or crushing. It is then transferred to concrete egg tanks where it completes fermentation. This enhances the structure and mouthfeel. The riper parcels will have 24 hours of skin contact and after a natural settling, it will go straight to old 500-liter Hungarian and French oak barrels for natural fermentation. The wine will spend 14 months on the primary lees (Sur Lie) without sulphur and almost no interference. The wine is bottled under screwcap.

TASTING NOTES

Bright pale gold colour. The bold, upfront nose is packed with notes of white nectarine, pineapple, yellow apple, star fruit, lime zest, nutmeg, and lilies. The palate is complex and layered with an array of spices, vanilla, apples, yellow plums, apricot, and lemon meringue. The wine has a creamy texture and a long zesty finish, which indicates ageing potential or up to 10 years from vintage under good storage conditions.

ALC 12.95% | RS 2.6 g/l | TA 5.6 g/l | pH 3.50 | FREE SO2 35 mg/l | TOTAL SO2 117 mg/l | VA 0.76 g/l

Data Sheet

https://ladybirdvineyards.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/LADYBIRD-SUR-LIE-2022.pdf