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Oom Pagel Semillon
As a young boy, I spent hours listening to the anecdotes of an old man who we affectionately called Oom Pagel (Uncle Pagel). He was a handsome man with a drooping moustache, a descendent of the Malay slaves brought to the Cape by the Dutch. I was fascinated by his stories which spanned a century of the life and times at Fairview. These stories instilled in me a love of the land and a respect for the people who worked it. Between all these stories, Oom Pagel still found time to grow champion vegetables. Oom Pagel s 12 children were born at Fairview, and a number of his grand and great grand children live and work with us today. Semillon was Oom Pagel s favourite grape, so it is fitting that we honour him with this wine.
Winemaker s tasting notes:
Pale colour with hints of green gold. The nose reveals the origin of the grapes, with aromas of fresh herbs, citrus and distinct minerality. Lemon and grapefruit continue to the palate, accompanied by initial oak spice and lingering sweet fruit. The palate is of pleasant weight with a careful balance between richness and zesty acidity.
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Caldera
Fairview cellar, with its spectacular view of Table Mountain, lies on the south west slopes of Paarl at the Cape of Good Hope. Established more than 300 years ago, Fairview has been in their family for three generations. Three unique ancient soils nurture the vines from which this wine is crafted. Old vine Grenache forms the basis of a wine with exceptional finesse. A ‘Calderata’ is the traditional Catalan upright earthenware pot used for the preparation of deep, flavourful dishes.
Caldera has developed a unique style over the past years. This is a wine that shows lovely deep fruit and evolved tannins and typical southern Rhône character. There is depth and concentration, but it is not overly showy. This is one of my favourite wines at Fairview, and is made to be appreciated, savoured and enjoyed. ~ Anthony de Jager
The wine is a perfect match for these, as well as the rustic flavours of Cape Mediterranean cooking.
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The Beacon Shiraz
Grapes were harvested fully ripe at 25.9° balling. The fruit was brought to the cellar in small lug boxes, destalked and hand sorted over a sorting table. All raisins, under ripe berries and stalks were removed. The sorted berries were sent straight to 500 litre open French oak fermenters. Manual punch downs (pigeage) were performed three times per day. Post fermentation maceration lasted for six days. The grapes were basket pressed, and malolactic fermentation was completed in barrel. The wine was then racked, lightly sulphured and returned to 40% new French oak, with the remainder in 2nd and 3rd fill French oak barrels. This vintage spent a total of 16 months in oak.
Winemaker s notes:
Having worked with this block for a number of years (and seeing the wines develop in the bottle) we are improving our understanding of the terroir. With this has come an understanding of the grippy, bold tannins that characterise the wines. These create wines that reward time in the bottle. Anthony de Jager
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Jakkalsfontein Shiraz
The Swartland (Black Land) region of the Cape gets its name from the indigenous velt Rhinoceros Velt which has a natural dark shade. This region has been farmed since the early 1700, by free burghers, who were settled by the Dutch East India Company to provide supplies for the companies' ships sailing to the spice islands in the east. Wild animals often preyed on the burghers’ sheep, and competed for food and water. This provided an excuse to defy the administrators of the Cape, and start wine production in this region. Jakkalsfontein is situated around a spring where to this day, the eerie evening calls of black-backed jackals can be heard. Old unirrigated bush vines produce bunches of Shiraz grapes with small berries.
Winemaker s tasting notes:
A vibrant, warm and spicy wine, with aromatic cinnamon topnotes supported by juicy, berry fruits. The finish is silky smooth and the wine pairs excellently with red meats.
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Primo Pinotage
This vineyard is in a stunning location, quite extreme and difficult to get to. This means that we do share a portion of the crop with the local inhabitants, baboons and small buck! Although in a traditionally warm area, the high elevation creates a wine with cooler climate character. It will be at its best after 3 to 5 years in the bottle. Anthony de Jager
Winemaker s tasting notes:
Deep purple red colour. Black plum, dark chocolate and subtle spice and cedar aromas. Medium bodied style, with restrained tannins.
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Eenzaamheid Shiraz
The grapes were machine harvested full ripe at 25.9°B. Mechanised harvesting was possible due to the uniform nature of the fruit on the vines, following meticulous vineyard management. The berries were transferred to 600 litre open-ended French oak barrels. Approximately 400kg of grapes per barrel was allowed to naturally start fermentation before being inoculated with L2056 yeast. During fermentation we performed three manual punch downs per day. Post fermentation maceration lasted for eight days. We basket pressed and the wine was sent to 225 litre French oak barriques for malolactic fermentation and further ageing. 40% new barrels were used and the wine was matured for a further 20 months prior to bottling. Total production for the 2006 vintage was twenty barrels.
Winemaker s tasting notes:
Nose shows gentle red berry and spice aromas, with hints of fragrance. Palate is medium to full bodied, with supple tannins balancing well with fruit acid. Oak treatment is well handled, providing subtle cedar and walnut character without overshadowing the elegant fruit flavours.
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Pegleg Carignan
There is very little Carignan grown in South Africa. We are very excited about the quality of these grapes, found accidentally while searching for old vine Pinotage in the area. The wine shows lovely complexity and rich fruit. Anthony de Jager
Winemaker s tasting notes:
Earthy and savoury, with plum and black cherry aromas. Plush texture with lively freshness and intese fruit flavours. The finish is light, with well integrated tannins.
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The Cyril Back
This is the second vintage of Cyril Back and is a barrel selection of the top shiraz in our cellar from the 2006 harvest. The wine has bold tannins, which add to its rich character. However they are supple and evolved tannins, which I find really appealing in a wine of this style. The wine will be at its best from 2010 and will continue to evolve in the bottle until at least 2015. Anthony de Jager
Winemaker s tasting notes:
Shy nose in its youth, showing subtle white pepper, anise and oak aromas. Full bodied structure, with firm yet well rounded tannins. Oaking is not overt, but sufficient to balance well with the overall mouthfeel and underlying fruit flavours. Will drink well from 2010.
