Gramadoelas Grenache Blanc WO Klein Karoo 2024

Gramadoelas is the only Scions of Sinai cuvée from a vineyard outside Stellenbosch, some 345 kilometres to the east, in the Klein Karoo, near Meiringspoort and the foothills of the Swartberg range. This Grenache Blanc vineyard, planted in 2009 at 450 metres above sea level, takes root in schist and shale soils in an arid continental climate. Bernhard Bredell, from a line of Helderberg winegrowers, saw in it a climate close to that of northern Spain, the grape's spiritual home.

The grapes are picked by hand and then undergo a short skin maceration of about two days before pressing. Fermentation starts spontaneously with native yeasts, in a minimal-intervention approach. The wine is then aged for nine months on fine lees in old 228- and 400-litre barrels as well as in a concrete tank, then bottled without fining or filtration, to preserve all the integrity and texture of the Grenache Blanc.

This wine reveals notes of white peach, sweet citrus, candied lemon zest, elderflower, lilac, rose, ginger, fynbos herbs and wet stone. The highly fragrant nose blends fruit, flowers, spice and a mineral touch. The palate, light in appearance but intensely flavoursome, rests on lively acidity balanced by a saline, slightly grippy texture inherited from the maceration. The finish is long, precise and elegant.

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.