A Fondness for Vondeling

There was sabrage to begin with. Over and above this, the bubbles being sabred were of an entirely new calibre. A most lovely experience had by all and a farm I’d love to visit.

BUBBLES:

·         Vondeling Methode Ancestral (2013):  100% Chardonnay. Fresh Chevin  with pears & passion fruit, slightly vinegary – borderline Balsamic reduction, sweetness, tinned peaches on yeast. (**)

WHITE:

·         Vondeling Babiana (2009): 30 year old vines, 55% Chenin, 15% Viognier, 15% Chardonnay, 10% Grenache Blanc, 100% oak, 30% new. Buttered apricots, salty richness, salted apricot cream, savoury, smooth, creamy with a punch, lurking green apple. (***)

·         Vondeling Babiana (2010): Honeyed French toast, lurking inside-of-a-balloon rubber, orangey lemon custard, tennis biscuit tart crust with Salticrax saltiness, light but rich soup, popcorniness, lurking strawberry, fuller  airy-ness, bitchier than ’09. ’09 is ’10 with little white gloves on. (**)

RED:

·         Vondeling Baldrick Shiraz (2011):  Shiraz, Viognier, Mourvedre. Chewy cherries, cracked pepper, Gummy berry juice, sneaky spiced wine gums, peppered carrots & potatoes, pastel coloured Jenga blocks, tannic but creamy, venison pie with bay leaves. Rated 90 pts by Robert Parker. (*)

·         Vondeling Erica Shiraz (2009): Shiraz, Carnigan, Mourvedre, Grenache. Raisins in muesli, molasses sweetness, a pinch of pepper on muesli, soft wisps of cinnamon mouthfeel, sharpness, ground nuts, chewy, spicy venison, chalky.

·         Vondeling Cabernet Sauvignon (2011): Cab Sauv, Merlot. Sweet rhubarb, bits of dried strawberry, honey on a buttered Pro-Vita, soft & cloudy, pillows of dried strawberries, cute tannins. (*)

 

Vining about Vondeling:

·         “Wines are like an amoeba”

·         Sauv vines planted in 1982

·         Sabrage – expels the sediment from bubbly

·         Vondeling spends R 1 million per year on conservation

·         Grapes are half from Paarl, half from the Swartland

·         Granite soils

·         Methode Ancestral can’t be released yet due to lack of a tax structure for the product as it’s new to the SA market.

·         MCC – ferment wines first fully then add sugar & do a second ferment

·         MA – ancient form of making bubbles, goes straight from tank ferment to bottles before it stabilizes & fermentation finishes in the bottle.

·         Sugar + fermentation = Gas

·         Only 5 vineyards in SA producing MA – 4 thereof are making it for the first time in 2013.

·         Only 200 cases produced – no additives & no sulphur.

·         Looking for it to be released in Mar/Apr 2014 – will be allocated to specialist stores & the tasting room

·         Aiming to make “the poor man’s champagne”

·         Baldrick is made for UK pubs – the owner’s friend who inspired the wine is nicknamed The Adder. Made as a people’s wine.

·         Babiana is always Chenin/Viognier based with at least 50% Chenin

·         Baniana is a genus of flower local to Paardeberg

·         Erica is also a genus local to the area & the cap is the colour of the petals