“Some of the best things in life emerge from tough times and dark places”.

This is the message on the back label and It’s no secret that growing conditions at the southern tip of Africa are extreme but the resilience of these Syrah vines from Cape Agulhas continues to astonish and delight us.

With it’s pronounced salt and pepper flavour profile that is the hallmark of Cape Agulhas Syrah, the nose is led by red cherry and violets, followed by smoked bacon, green olive brine, white pepper and dried buchu. It has a medium bodied palate, with concentrated fruit coating an intensely umami core: soy, brine brightened by orange zest on the finish with fine tannins.

All the fruit was harvested from two cool climate, low-altitude Syrah parcels (50m above sea level), just 8km from the stark and blustery coast. Facing North West, one 21-year old parcel is planted on Clay and the other (22 years) on Koffieklip soils. As always, we like to let the sites do the talking, so the fruit was matured for 10 months in neutral French Oak, in 228L and 300L barrels.

An unseasonally hot dry spell in August followed by a cool Spring meant this growing season was far from textbook and Mother Nature kept us on our toes! After early leaf fall and uneven bud burst, wind and frequent showers persisted during flowering. High humidity late into the growing season caused high Botrytis and Mildew pressure, then cool weather delayed harvest by three weeks. Though the result was reduced yield, being attentive in the vineyards has paid off.