A New Cork and an Historical Day on De Wetshof Estate

None of those who were in the De Wetshof winery on Monday 12 March will forget it. Not one.

The occasion was a session of re-corking of vintage wines, something Amorim has been doing since the end of last year and which has been extensively written about. De Wetshof, the pioneering wine estate in Robertson, was next on the list for Project Re-Cork, so the Amorim team of Joaquim Sá, CEO and his colleague Bruno Maia trekked out to the farm with sommelier and wine technical expert Jean-Vincent Ridon.

By now familiar with the procedure of re-corking, two batches of old De Wetshof wines were subjected to the team’s polished skills. Chardonnays from the 1981 vintage were opened and tasted, and adjudged to be in perfect shape. “This is Chardonnay!” exclaimed De Wetshof CEO Johann de Wet. “The wine has taken on a whole new dimension over the decades, and if there is one word I can use to describe it, it is ‘personality’. Everyone who loves Chardonnay should taste perfectly aged wines such as these.”

The old corks were relatively easily removed, something Jean-Vincent ascribed to De Wetshof’s insistence on maturing its wines at a cool 9°C.

A set of De Wetshof Sauvignon Blanc, also from the 1981 vintage, followed and the wines were equally impressive.


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