About this WINE
Catherine Marshall Wines
Cathy Marshall is one of the original garagiste winemakers in South Africa; she graduated from Elsenburg College in 1991 and served a number of apprenticeships in premium South African wineries before gaining valuable experience abroad. She was inspired to set up a small wine-making enterprise after a post-harvest foot-crushing celebration resulted in the creation of three barrels of superb Syrah wine subsequently distributed amongst the revellers. A year later Cathy set up the Barefoot Wine Company and has since carved out a distinguished reputation as one of South Africa’s most skilled and innovative producers.
The winery lies in the Elgin Valley, surrounded by mountains and yet only 30 minutes from the sea. This creates a cool climate for growing grapes, conducive to maximum development of flavour and complexity. Cathy’s aim is to make wines of great purity, with absolutely minimal intervention, which reflect their origins. The Elgin Valley has rapidly acquired a reputation as a source of aromatically pure wines with excellent varietal expression, and we are delighted to have secured a modest allocation.
Other Varieties
There are over 200 different grape varieties used in modern wine making (from a total of over 1000). Most lesser known blends and varieties are traditional to specific parts of the world.
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Description
Catherine Marshall's Syrah-Mourvedre-Grenache is a classic Southern Rhone blend typified by wines like Chateauneuf-du-Pape; many growers have identified the Swartland wine region in South Africa as ideally suited to the production of Rhone-style wines in preference to Bordeaux or Burgundy look-alikes, and it is no surprise that Cathy Marshall sources her grapes for this wine from that area.
Grenache produces soft, generous, lush-textured wines; Mourvedre yields dark, brooding, tannic wines while Syrah imparts a touch of class with its perfumed nose of violets and black fruit, while at the same time adding a healthy dose of acidity and peppery spice to the ensemble.
The juice of each grape is here fermented separately and then aged separately, in this case for 16 months in a combination of new, first, second, third and fourth-year fill. At the end of the maturation period the three wines are blended together to form the final cuvée.
The bouquet is very reminiscent of the Southern Rhone with aromas of black cherry and dark chocolate, spiced up by powerful hints of black pepper. The palate is lush, fruity and rich, with weight and depth but finishes elegant and refined, with fine-grained tannins lending support to the structure.
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