Pioneering Chardonnay wine estate De Wetshof from Robertson won both Gold medals awarded for Unwooded Chardonnay at this year’s Veritas Awards, South Africa’s largest and most prestigious wine and brandy competition which celebrated its 25th anniversary this year.
The Gold medals went to the De Wetshof Estate Limestone Hill Chardonnay 2015 and the Danie de Wet Limestone Hill Chardonnay (specially bottled for Woolworths), also from the 2015 vintage.
Some 1 763 wines and brandies were entered into this year’s Veritas awards, of which only 57 wines won Double Gold and 157 Gold.
According to Peter de Wet, De Wetshof winemaker, Veritas is the stand-out South African wine competition with which De Wetshof has been associated since its inception in 1991.
“A Gold medal at Veritas is not only recognition for our vineyards and cellar-team, but also of great value to the consumer who has to navigate through an ever-growing range of wines,” he says. “With its stringent judging process by local and international experts, Veritas affords recognition of which any successful producer can feel justifiably proud.”
Peter says the 2015 vintage is proving to be one of the finest for Chardonnay. An early harvest due to a long dry summer saw the grapes arriving at the cellar 10 days earlier than usual in a stage of optimal ripeness.
“Like all our Chardonnays, the grapes for the Limestone Hill wines are sourced from vineyards growing on sites specifically suited to the style of wine that is going to be bottled,” says Peter. “The Limestone Hill vineyards are on limestone-rich soils, with a high clay component ensuring coolness and a high water-retention capacity.”
What is important in making an unwooded Chardonnay, says Peter, is that it is not just a matter of keeping the juice and the wine away from oak. “The chemistry of the grapes and the vineyard conditions have to be conducive to producing a Chardonnay that shows its best features in an unwooded environment,” he says. “The Limestone Hill vineyards were especially planted for producing this style of wine.”
In its creation, the Limestone Hill is kept on the lees in stainless steel tanks under cool temperatures. Weekly stirring of the lees ensures the wine extracts maximum flavours and maintains a fine balance between freshness and complexity.
The American critic Robert Parker describes De Wetshof’s Limestone Hill Chardonnay as follows: “The wine never sees oak and offers impeccable pure apple, peach and lemon fruit, a lovely leesy richness of texture and chalky, fruit-filled finish of imposing length.”
According to Peter, the Limestone Hill is proving to be especially popular to consumers who simply prefer Chardonnays without the wooded element.
“The wine is fresh and accessible, with enough complexity in structure and mouthfeel to ensure a
presence on the palate,” he says. “The perfect all-day drinking wine, and simply superb with sushi, oysters or cream-based pastas. And with a Veritas Gold medal on the bottle, it tastes even better!”
