Warwick Estate Trilogy, Stellenbosch

Description

Warwick Estate Trilogy remains one of the classic South African Bordeaux-style red wine blends from the Simonsberg area of the Stellenbosch wine-growing region.

Warwick Estate has a long history. It was known as the De Goede Sukses Farm from 1771 until 1902 when it was bought by Colonel William Alexander Gordon, Commanding Officer of the Warwickshire Regiment decided against returning to England and bought the farm. He renamed it “Warwick” as a tribute to his regiment. The modern era of winemaking began when Stan Ratcliffe bought the estate on April 1st 1964. He was searching for the best vineyard sites in the The Cape and, together with his new bride Norma, they soon realized the potential of the extraordinary property and began planting Cabernet Sauvignon. The Cabernet Sauvignon vines produced high-quality grapes, which were soon in demand from neighbouring wineries.

Norma became more and more interested in the making of wine and began to study the subject. Soon a cellar was in place and in 1984 the first “legal” Warwick vintage was released (a Cabernet Sauvignon). Stan and Norma’s son, Mike, the 3rd generation family member to oversee this high-quality boutique operation, ran the estate until 2017 when it was acquired by Eileses Capital, a San Francisco investment company. Today the company is run by CEO Christiana von Arnim. Mike Ratcliffe can be found at his new wine project, Vilafonté.

Warwick Estate Trilogy is a blend of Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Each component was harvested and vinified separately. Different vineyards and parcels of grapes are hand-harvested in the early morning to ensure that the grapes arrive at the winery cool and in the best condition. They are then de-stemmed and individual berries are sorted on a vibrating sorting table. The grapes are then gently pressed and fermented in open-top fermenters. The wine is cold settled for 3-7 days and different parcels are fermented dry with a variety of yeasts. The wine receives a daily pump-over. Malolactic fermentation is done in tank. After malolactic fermentation, the wine was racked to 225L tight grain French oak barrels  (34% new, 47% second fill, 14% third fill and 5% fourth fill)  and the wine is aged for approximately 20 months.

Warwick Estate Trilogy 2019 is a blend of 48% Cabernet Franc, 38% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot.

This wine is suitable for vegans and vegetarians.