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Happy New Year! Welcome to 2006! New, soft, bright green shoots are bursting out of the vines. It has been a nice cold winter on the farm, the vines have had a good rest and they're waving hello to the world.
My 2006, like many grape growers' begins about now, because a grape grower's year is a seasonal concept, not kicked off by a definitive date - it just forces itself on us, suddenly and powerfully like birth.
As the vines come to life, so do we. I feel like a big bear after a long winter hibernation.
The vineyard work has begun with delicate breaking away of shoots in the wrong position on the cordon. We do this to get the perfect spacing between the shoots that will eventually carry the bunches. Our grapes fly first class, with lots of room to swing around and catch the light. This early thinning also keeps the crop low, so the fruit is more concentrated and evenly ripe.
From now on each vineyard decision will have a dramatic impact on the wines of the 2006 vintage. We will drink the results of these decisions for years to come - it's worth doing it right.
The vines waking up re-energize you. The team talks in the winery turn from blending and bottling to new, creative ideas for the coming harvest - for the three months of intense, total immersion in our craft - our life.
To a winemaker, the crush (or vintage) is like diving into a pool of ice cold water on a sweltering, close, hot day. You emerge from the shock of the cold, refreshed, tingling and motivated. You feel like a warrior, a revolutionary, a mid-wife, a survivor, a privileged participant. It is the breathtaking and energising antithesis of watching TV.
Every year for the past three or four thousand years at least; some grape grower somewhere has had the same response to this stirring of our planet's energy. He or she has suddenly felt the switch into the wound-up, growing mode - entranced by the explosion of growth - as though our earth is quietly inspiring us to remain positive.
I am already obsessed with the details of harvest. It's going to be a brilliant year.
Love, light, happiness and glass of Flagstone,
Bruce
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Berrio Launch:
In September we held a retrospective tasting of the Berrio wines from the Elim vineyards of my great friend and partner, Francis Pratt. It was a tasting with a difference because it took place in London. The aim was to show the uniqueness of the grapes and the longevity of the resulting wine from this extraordinary place.
We showed single vineyard Sauvignon Blancs from 2001 to 2005. I believe this is the first time anyone from South Africa has shown 5 vintages of a white wine from a cool climate in South Africa.
The wine of the day was the 2002 Elim Sauvignon Blanc, just beginning to show a generous flash of mind-blowing class. This tasting demonstrated to me that the minerally 2004 and exuberant 2005 vintage will blow people away in 5 years time. We have something really special here.
I do not believe there is an area anywhere in the world as exciting as Elim for the production of joyful, yet seriously structured and drinkable Sauvignon Blanc. We all feel so privileged being part of this little revolution.
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Tasting Room
Enormous congratulations to Gerald Cakijana, who has recently been appointed as our Cellar Door Manager. Gerald has been part of the winemaking team since 2001. He has been our head cellarhand and part of the winemaking team and has even worked a northern vintage in California. He has been an integral and critical part of our recent Flagstone winemaking success. We know he will achieve similarly great feats in the sales team.
We now have a dedicated tasting room that is available from 8 - 5 Monday to Friday for wine sales and tastings. We charge R20.00 per head for tasting, which is redeemable on the purchase of any wine. Please phone in advance for a booking to avoid disappointment - (021) 852 5052.
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Veritas:
Dark Horse Shiraz 2003 - Double gold
This wine has also been selected to fly SAA First Class early next year.
Juliet Cullinan:
Dragon Tree Cape Blend 2003 - 2nd in the Cape Blend class.
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Matthew Jukes The Wine List 2006:
Jack & Knox, Green on Green Semillon, 2004,
Wellington South Africa (deFINE, Harrogate, Oddbins, Veritas and Wine
Society).
This is the finest Green on Green Semillon (and it really is neon green
in colour) I have ever seen. Extraordinarily pure and very 'green' and
lime juicy on the palate, this is a very pungent wine that can be sent
into battle with some of the most assertive dishes of all time. It ages
very well, too. So take the plunge and immerse yourself in this verdant
pasture.
Jack & Knox, The Outsider Shiraz, 2004,
Western Cape, South Africa (deFINE, Harrogate and Veritas).
2002 Outsider Shiraz was one of the most remarkable wines I had ever
tasted - regal, intense, all - encompassing, bludgeoning my system into
compliance. The 2004 is better. In fact, it is totally awesome -
brilliant depth, heroic length and mighty finish.
You have to be fit and able even to get the cork out, let alone heft the
weight of this bottle. Put it near your nose and you are a superhero,
taste it and you are The Outsider.
Jancis Robinson - Mary le Bow
“Another fine South African red from carefully scouted vineyards is Flagstone 's Mary Le Bow 2004 Western Cape which is quite different, being based on Cabernet with some 25 per cent Syrah and 13 per cent Merlot. It is still youthful but has lots of sophisticated promise and has none of the aggressive acidity or harsh tannins of old-fashioned Cape reds. This is energetic and harmonious and has a comfortable 13.5 per cent alcohol.”
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2003 Fiona Pinot Noir
We are about to release a limited amount of the 2003 Fiona Pinot Noir under screw-cap at the end of this month. It is available from the Cellar at R85.00 a bottle till November 31st. Delivery is free for orders of a case (12 bottles) or more in JHB, Cape Town and Durban. This wine is extraordinary value for money with wonderful strawberry and vanilla hints, along with tobacco on the nose. Summer strawberry jam on the palate, ripe cherry and mocha, with undertones of taciturn stewed plum and cloves. Very pleasant, with lingering, baked flavours, so don't delay! Place your orders early, as this is a very popular wine. Those of you who enjoyed the same wine under natural cork will know what we mean.
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Fiona Pinot Noir
Vintage: 2003
Price: R85.00
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2005 Freerun Sauvignon Blanc
The other wine we have available for you is our 2005 Freerun Sauvignon Blanc. Our search for the right combination of vineyard sites to make our Free Run Sauvignon Blanc has taken us on an enlightening journey through the lives of vineyards in almost every area of the Western Cape. This year's vintage is an enticing blend of fruit from Robertson and Elim. We use a traditional stirring of the lees to craft a succulent, mouth-watering, balanced and above all, drinkable wine. The name Free Run comes from the method of using only the first, free-flowing, free run juice to make this wine. A steal from the Cellar at R55.00 per bottle, as above, delivered to major metropolitan areas free of charge for orders of 12 or more.
To order phone Sarah: 021 852 5052
or email: sales@flagstonewinery.co.za.
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Freerun Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2005
Price: R55.00
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