THE Sauvignon Blanc Reserve is made from two vineyards on Diemersdal growing on different altitudes. One vineyard is 400m above sea-level – the highest on the farm – while the other is at 150m. Both are on decomposed gravel soils with a substantial clay component, providing the ideal degrees of drainage and water-retention. The influence of the nearby Atlantic Ocean, together with the soils and vineyards’ aspects, continuously provides superb Sauvignon Blanc fruit from these two sites from which the Diemersdal Sauvignon Blanc Reserve is made.
Thys Louw, proprietor and winemaker, says that Diemersdal’s commitment to dryland viticulture plays a major role in the consistent quality of the estate’s wines. “There is no irrigation on our farm, and never has been – except for lawns and flowers,” he says. “Vines live better and are more in-tune with their natural environment when they only have rainfall to rely on for water. For us it is all about the vineyard, and it is the vineyard that makes the Diemersdal Sauvignon Blanc Reserve.”
The ideal conditions of the 2023 growing season played a factor in the quality of this year’s Sauvignon Blanc on Diemersdal. “We saw a reasonably cool wet winter in 2022, followed by a perfect growing season with the stages of bud-break, berry-set, veraison and ripening occurring evenly,” says Louw.
After picking, the grapes for the Sauvignon Blanc Reserve 2023 were crushed and destemmed, with 24 hours skin-contact before pressing. The juice was given 36 hours to settle before racking and inoculating with selected yeast. After three weeks alcoholic fermentation, the wine was kept on the lees for five months, with weekly stirrings to allow the juice to draw complexity and mouthfeel.
“I like the way the classic flavours of asparagus and green herbs are presented here from the outset, but then offset by tropical notes and a fresh zip of citrus acidity,” says Louw. The tropical notes are this year perhaps more pronounced than in previous vintages due to the longer ripening period and exposure to the sun.”
Diemersdal Sauvignon Blanc Reserve is available at a recommended retail price of R160.
