Riesling WO Elgin 2024

This Riesling comes from Elgin, a cool appellation on the south coast of the Cape, in South Africa, about an hour east of Cape Town. Perched on a plateau surrounded by mountains and very close to the ocean, the valley enjoys a cool climate marked by winds and sea mists, which encourages slow ripening. Pioneers of viticulture in the region, the Cluver family grows its vines on shale-rich soils that give the wine its backbone and mineral imprint.

The grapes are carefully sorted in the vineyard and then at the winery. The juice ferments with selected yeasts, some of it, about a fifth, in large oval oak foudres. For part of the cuvée, fermentation is deliberately stopped to retain a little natural sugar, while the rest ferments to dryness on fine lees, which enriches the texture. The different lots are then blended and bottled.

This wine reveals notes of lime, orange blossom, ripe lemon, nectarine, green apple, honeysuckle, honey and wet stone. The expressive, delicate nose blends fresh fruit and citrus blossom. The palate is chiselled and taut, with the nervy edge typical of Riesling and a subtle interplay between natural sugar and lively acidity. The mineral core brings structure and complexity, through to a long, vibrant finish.

The first vines were planted in South Africa by Dutch settlers in the 1650s, although wine production did not really begin to take off until the arrival of French Protestants, in the 1680s, with their skills and their knowledge of viticulture. Stellenbosch is also a historic wine region, with the first vineyards being planted there in the 1690s. Today South Africa is one of the most important wine producing countries in the southern hemisphere. With over 300 years of winemaking history, it is often described as a bridge between the Old and New Worlds. The majority of wines are produced using New World winemaking techniques, but they often have more in common stylistically with their Old World counterparts. Since the end of apartheid, South African wine has received international attention and acclaim for its wide variety of styles. South Africa's wine industry is spread across the lush and rugged landscape of the Western Cape. Here, the abundance of mountains, valleys and plateaus allows winemakers to produce a wide variety of styles. Vineyards can also be found in the Orange River region of the Northern Cape, where the flat, arid landscape is dominated by the Kalahari Desert. Most of South Africa's wine regions have a Mediterranean climate, strongly influenced by the meeting of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. The country's signature grape variety is Pinotage, an indigenous cross of Pinot Noir and Cinsaut that is rarely found in quantity in other wine-producing countries. Shiraz (Syrah) is also widely planted, as are Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot (often combined in a Bordeaux blend). South African Chardonnay, Chenin and Sauvignon Blanc have become popular internationally in recent years.